Something Wicked This Way Comes
by Phaze
Summary: An evil Lex Luthor from an alternate reality comes to Smallville looking for Clark, and his world is turned up side down by the results. Chapter 9 Home Again The Final Chapter added.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: These characters are on loan from the Smallville television series with out permission and are not my property. They belong to the Warner Brothers Empire, which include the WB network, and DC Comics. No harm or malice is intended.  
  
I would like to thank Christin Haney and Macayla Jo Adams for their hard work and dedication to making my work look good. I thank them along with Holly (Sasa), Ruth Despirito and Karen Poitras for all their support and inspiration.  
  
Thank you for taking the time to read and please enjoy. Comments are always welcomed.  
  
Description: An evil Lex Luthor from an alternate reality comes to Smallville looking for Clark, and his world is turned up side down by the results.  
  
  
  
1 Smallville: Something Wicked This Way Comes: Chapter One  
  
A sequel to: 'The Morning After'. Clark made a secret wish and woke up in a world where he had never landed on Earth and the meteor shows never hit Smallville and the history of the small town, like the landscape had been changed forever.  
  
The Kents never had a son. They lost the farm only to buy the town's hardware store where they then lived. Martha Kent became a midwife. Chloe Sullivan remained alone with no friends. Pete Ross, who was placed as the scarecrow on the night of the big game, died from exposure to the weather. Lana Lang became estranged from her troubled parents and married her high school sweetheart, Whitney Fordman, who went to jail for the accidental murder of Pete Ross. She worked at the town diner while she awaited the birth of her baby. Lex Luthor never lost his hair and never became humbled by the events. He became Smallville's only benefactor, but was also evil to the core. Up to the point of holding his own father as a crippled prisoner in his large castle on the edge of town.  
  
After a confrontation with the young stranger named Clark Kent, Lex discovered that the boy had secrets to hide, and Lex wanted them. Clark was barely able to escape with his life and woke up safe and warm in his own bed. He determined that the entire event had been just a bad dream and went on with life, but he was wrong. Unknown to Smallville, a great evil was awakened that Christmas morning, and it was making its way to Lowell County, Kansas.  
  
  
  
Part One: Chapter One  
  
The room was large and completely dark. No lights had shown here for over three months, and barely anyone even knew it ever existed. Yet in the early hours of a late March morning, a small orb of blue light began to flicker in the very center of the large warehouse. A slight sound of burning electrical currants began growing along with the blue ball that floated a few feet off the ground. It took only minutes before the sphere object grew to enormous size touching the floor beneath it and reaching a height of over fifteen feet.  
  
The object seemed to settle, and stopped expanding. The bright blue light from the orb lighted the entire enclosed structure. Then, shadowed objects began to move from within the sphere. The shadows became larger and bounced around, as they seemed to come closer to the edge. It was a few second later when one by one, two figures emerged from the bright light and stepped out into the empty room. One of those figures seemed to be smiling.  
  
  
  
Lex Luthor laid in a deep slumber, alone on his large bed in his mansion just on the outskirts of Smallville, when the phone next to his bed began to wring. The noise startled the young bald man as he sat up quickly. The phone lines to his room were always silenced during the night, and only his private line remained functional. Very few people knew the secret number, and it was always alarming for him to hear it's sound. Even more so at "Three thirty," In the morning, he looked over at his clock radio and read.  
  
"This had better be important," he said harshly into the receiver.  
  
"Mister Luthor," The familiar voice of his plant supervisor Gab Sullivan said. "We have a problem down here at the plant."  
  
"Isn't that why I pay you the big money to handle it?" Lex rubbed his eyes with frustration.  
  
"This is different," Gab returned. "There seems to be some type of structural failure with one of the walls on the second level."  
  
"What kind of structural failure?" The subject had gotten the younger man's attention.  
  
"A six foot hole seems to have appeared out of nowhere," he told him.  
  
"A hole?" Lex repeated. "Well, where is it? What's on the other side?"  
  
Gab's voice was silent for a second, and then he said the words that sent a shiver up Lex's spine: "Level three."  
  
Lex sat in shock for a moment. Level Three had been a secret testing area that even he was not aware of until a few months earlier when he learned of his father's secrets. They had managed to seal it off and keep it hidden from the populace of Smallville.  
  
"Clear that area of the building, and don't do anything else until I get there," Lex ordered as he tossed off his blankets and jumped out of bed. "I'll be there in fifteen minutes."  
  
Hanging up the phone, he tossed it onto the bed and rushed to the bathroom.  
  
  
  
The sun had been up for over an hour when Chloe Sullivan, Pete Ross, and Clark Kent made their way to the Luthor Corp Manure Process Plant #3 just outside of town. They made their way up to the office area of the front building. Being Gab Sullivan's daughter gave Chloe easy access to her father's side of the building. Clark, being Lex's friend, gave him admittance into the rest of the offices.  
  
"Hi Sally," Chloe greeted her father's secretary with a smile. "Is my Dad in his office?"  
  
"Hi, Chloe," The young blond woman smiled back. "No, I'm afraid not. He's been in with Mr. Luthor all morning. I don't know when he'll be back."  
  
"That's strange," Chloe gave her inquisitiveness look. "My father gets called into work in the middle of the night, and now he's in a over time meeting with the head cheese himself. Something big is going on here..."  
  
"Come on, Chloe," Clark remarked. "It's a fertilizer plant. What could possibly be so big and important?" He could see her reporter instincts churning behind her eyes.  
  
"Yeah, besides," Pete added in. "We are supposed to be on a school break this week. Not taking another field trip to a manure plant."  
  
"Play it down all you want," Chloe argued. "But like I said on the phone earlier, I am sure something big is happening here."  
  
"Remind me to never to become a reporter," Clark told her. "I don't think I could live on paranoid mode all the time."  
  
"Don't dismiss it as paranoid, Clark," She warned. "I know my father well enough to know that he was freaked when he was called in here last night. Like you said, it's a manure plant, what could possibly get him so worked up that easily?"  
  
"Maybe a pipe busted or something," Pete told her. "He probably just didn't want his work to hit the fan, so to speak." The two guys snickered at his lame joke.  
  
"Guys," she shook her hands with frustration. "This could be serious. We need to find my Dad."  
  
Clark gave Pete his defeated look and they slowly made their way back up the hall behind her.  
  
It was then they heard screaming coming from the direction of Lex's office. The voice belonged to the CEO himself, Lex Luthor. "Don't mess with me Carl!" He screamed. "We have a team working on it already, and I will take care of the problem myself."  
  
A few hushed sounds came after.  
  
The door swung open and six men and woman wearing smart business suite, including Chloe's father Gab, came rushing out with Lex behind them. "Now go and keep this thing quite and make sure my father doesn't find out about it. If he does, you'll all be sharing a space in the unemployment line."  
  
The suites all scattered up the hall in all directions and each disappeared into a different office. It was then that Lex Spotted Clark and his friends at the opposite end. He made no effort to acknowledge his friend and simply stepped back into his office closing the door.  
  
"Well, that was friendly," Chloe, remarked with sarcasm.  
  
Clark felt he needed to be concern for Lex and began to walk towards his office. "I think you're right about this being big," He said. "I need to check on Lex."  
  
"Wow," Chloe commented. "That didn't take long."  
  
"What do you mean?" Pete asked.  
  
"If we're not getting blown off for Lana, its Lex," she told him.  
  
"Yeah, kinda makes you feel special, don't it?" Pete agreed.  
  
At the end of the hall, Clark knocked softly on Lex's office door.  
  
"Not now, Tammy," he said. "I don't need anymore interruptions."  
  
Clark opened the door slowly and stuck his head inside. "It's not Tammy, Lex," he cautiously spoke. "It's me, Clark."  
  
Lex looked up from his cluttered desk where papers and blue prints of all sorts were spread out. A look of bewilderment came across his face. "Clark? Did we have a meeting set for today?"  
  
"No," Clark came in and closed the door. "Pete and I came with Chloe to check up on her Dad, and we witnessed the purging of your office a minute ago. Is everything alright?"  
  
Lex could only look at him with a 'deer in the head lights' look. He attempted to smile, but could not bring his mouth to move.  
  
"What is it, Lex?"  
  
The debate raged in Lex's head. Should he tell his young friend what was going on, or should he keep him out of the loop, like he hoped to do with the rest of Smallville.  
  
"Maybe I can help, Lex," Clark forced a smile. "I have been told I have a soothing personality."  
  
"It's level three," Lex finally said. The words slipped out before even he realized. He noticed how just mentioning it to his friend seemed to ease the burden slightly for him and he added. "There has been a development in level three."  
  
Clark was shocked by his friend's words. He remembered how months before he and his classmates had been held captured by a mad man from Clark's past who was looking for the then believed imagined level three. The man had been contaminated by meteor fragments in a failed experiment conducted by Lionel Luthor six months earlier and was looking for a cure. The discovery of the secret facility had almost proven deadly for all three of them.  
  
"What--what type of development?" Clark's stammered voice asked.  
  
Lex looked away. He suddenly felt this might be wrong.  
  
"Come on Lex," Clark insisted. "Is anyone else in danger?"  
  
"I don't know," Lex answered. "I wish to God I knew for sure."  
  
"Well what is it?" Clark asked again with alarm in his voice. "What is going on down in Level Three?"  
  
Lex studied his friend for a moment. "I can't explain it, Clark." There was a battle raging behind his eyes before he decided. "All I can do is show you."  
  
Clark was surprised at his candor. Even though they had been friends for months, Lex was never open with him right at the point of origin. It was weeks after he had hit Clark on the bridge where they first met that Lex told him that he still had that same car and was trying to determine how Clark survived the crash. So he knew what ever was going on under their feet was bothering Lex to no end.  
  
Lex walked around the desk and the two went out into the hall. They could see that Chloe and Pete were deep in conversation with her father. Gab was not being as open with his daughter as Lex was being with Clark.  
  
They stopped and watch for a few seconds.  
  
"Chloe and Pete came with me," Clark said from behind Lex. "She was worried about her father."  
  
Lexes looked over his shoulder at Clark with no expression on his face, and then back up the hall.  
  
He cleared his throat and then announced. "I am taking Clark down to level three. You are welcomed to join us."  
  
This statement surprised them all. Chloe and Pete still were not aware that there even was a level three. They had been told that Earl, the mad man from before, had mistaken a warehouse as a secret level three.  
  
Clark stared at Lex. What ever was happening, it was throwing his friend for a loop. He and Lex had let down their guard with each other in times past, but Lex had never let anyone else into his inner circle: Much less, the high school's best newspaper reporter. 'This is big', was putting it mildly.  
  
Chloe and Pete first looked at each other and did not say a word. They silently followed Lex and Clark down another hall  
  
It was about ten minutes before they reached the secret entrance to the level three's elevator. Clark knew what was hidden behind the broom closet wall. He and Lex had almost lost their lives down here before. A large gapping hole stood in place of the where the new cinder block wall was placed.  
  
"Oh, my God," Chloe gasped.  
  
Lex stopped and examined the opening. "This is just the beginning of the mystery," he said. "If you look closely at the edges and some of the debris, you'll notice what looks like claw or knuckle prints in the wall."  
  
"Knuckle prints?" Pete repeated. "What do you mean?"  
  
"It appears that someone punched their way out of Level Three with their bare hands," Lex told them.  
  
"That's crazy, Lex," Clark commented. "No one can punch through a brick wall," he said. No one, that is but him, of course.  
  
"Like I said," Lex continued. "This is only the beginning." They made their way over the rubble to the previously hidden elevator and pushed the button.  
  
"How long has this place been here?" Pete asked as they rode the elevator down.  
  
"You'll have to ask my father that question," Lex replied. "Clark and I didn't find out until Earl took us down here a few months ago."  
  
Chloe looked up at a silent Clark. "You knew?" She whispered.  
  
"Clark is a good friend, Chloe," Lex said. "He knows how to keep a friend's secret."  
  
Chloe let the matter go, but still gave Clark a suspicious look.  
  
He in turn tried to concentrate on Lex's state of mind at that moment.  
  
The elevator doors opened and revealed a large warehouse sized room that was emptied with the exception of a ladder that led down to the floor some thirty feet bellow and a large glowing sea blue object in the center of the room. People in lab coats with computers and other testing equipment surrounded it.  
  
After the climb down, they made their way slowly over to the object.  
  
"Oh, my God," Chloe gasped. "This is incredible."  
  
"What is it?" Pete asked with the same mesmerized look on his face.  
  
"We don't know," Lex said, joining the line next to them.  
  
Clark stepped forward and reached his hand out to it.  
  
"Clark," Lex grabbed it and pulled it back. "Are you crazy? We have no idea what is it. We don't even know what contact will do to the human body."  
  
"Sorry," Clark pulled his hand away with a hurt expression.  
  
"Any idea what it is made of?" Chloe asked.  
  
"Energy of some kind," A voice said from behind them.  
  
They turned to see a middle aged man standing there with a lab coat and a tiny computer object in his hand.  
  
"This is Doctor Ruller," Lex told them. "He is the lead researcher on this project."  
  
"I don't understand," Clark put in. "If you don't know what this is, then where did it come from?"  
  
"It appeared during the night," Doctor Ruller explained. "From all I know about the world of electrical research and energy pulses, this is like nothing else I have ever seen. It would almost come across as being 'other worldly'."  
  
"Are you talking like science fiction?" Pete asked.  
  
"Is that all so hard to believe here in Smallville?" Chloe asked. "Things go on here that would put the sci-fi channel to shame."  
  
"Well," Clark turned back to it. "Are you sure it's not a left over from one of your father's experiments?" He asked Lex.  
  
"My father is interested in raping the world of all its resources. Not creating big blue energy balls," Lex told him. "I don't think this is something anyone at Luthor Corp could dream up."  
  
"Do they have any clues as to what it might be?" Chloe asked.  
  
Lex turned his head to Dr. Ruller who stood next to him. "Do we?"  
  
"Only this," He took a pen from his pocket and tossed it into the blue orb of energy, which made a low crackling noise and swallowed it.  
  
They all looked around to see where the pen had landed, but found it was no longer in the room.  
  
"Where did it go?" Pete asked.  
  
"That is the question," Ruller said. "It appears that if nothing else, this object could be some kind of transporter."  
  
"Transporter?" Lex repeated.  
  
"You mean like a worm hole?" Pete added.  
  
"What in your sick little mind is a worm hole?" Chloe asked him.  
  
"It's like one of those things on Star Trek. Where they use it as a short cut between galaxies."  
  
They all looked at him with a puzzled look.  
  
"You know what I'm talking about," he defended himself. "They had them all the time on The Next Generation and DS9. The Voyager even got lost in one."  
  
"Is that the Enterprise show you watch?" Chloe asked.  
  
"Sorta, only they don't know about worm holes yet since they are before the other shows and haven't gone that far into space."  
  
She gave him another dumb look. "Wait, Enterprise is some kinda prequel to the original Star Treks?" Chloe asked.  
  
"Sure, it's like what George Lucas is doing with the Star Wars movies," Pete explained. "He's telling the story that happen before the big story."  
  
"So, you are telling me that people are interested in knowing what happens in these shows before the real story? Even when they know how it's going to end?" She asked.  
  
"Sure, they do it all the time on television now days," he told her.  
  
"Well, that's just plain stupid," she remarked. "Who would watch something like that?"  
  
The entire room was completely silent for a few seconds. Each person just looked out into nothingness with a blank expression.  
  
"Anyway," Clark interrupted. "Back to the matter at hand. A transporter device you say?"  
  
"Yes," Dr. Ruller said. "The energy field seems to swallow anything we have to throw at it. We have even been able to retrieve some of the objects when tethered at this end. We have already tested it with various lengths of rope."  
  
"Everything comes back unharmed?" Lex asked.  
  
"All, but this," He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small stuff animal that was tattered and torn. "We sent this perfectly new stuff bunny through the void earlier, and something seemed to grasp onto it. When we pulled it back, it had been attacked and chewed. The wet substance found on it seemed to be of the canine nature."  
  
"A dog ate the bunny?" Chloe questioned.  
  
"It would appear so, young lady,"  
  
"So what ever this is," Pete reasoned out. "There is a dog on the other end?"  
  
The doctor nodded.  
  
"Is that all you have?" Lex asked looked frustrated.  
  
"I am afraid so, Mister Luthor,"  
  
"Very well," Lex said. "Keep working on it. And I want results soon"  
  
He lead the three young people back up to the elevator and to the second level.  
  
Once out side of his office he turned to them. "I have to ask you to keep this under wraps," Lex Explained. "There is no telling what that thing down there is, and I do not want Smallville in a panic. I especially don't want it aimed at my company."  
  
"Sure, Lex," Both Pete and Clark said.  
  
Lex noticed that Chloe did not give her approval. He stood before her with a concerned look. "I know how hard this is for you, Chloe," he spoke softly. "But this could destroy Luthor Corp and Smallville as well. We need to keep this our secret. At least for now."  
  
She thought hard about what he was asking. "The Torch is not printing this week for vacation," she said. "I'll need to have some answers for next weeks addition."  
  
"If I have them," Lex assured her. "So will you. So please, no story until we have answers."  
  
Again she thought it out. "Okay." She returned with a suspicious look. She had no idea if she could trust him to ever tell her the truth, but the fact that she had been let in on the secret at all was a big enough shock to her system already.  
  
"Good," Lex smiled. "I just need to do one more thing." He pulled on Clark's arm and led him into the office. "Could I see you for a minute?"  
  
"Sure," Clark allowed himself to be lead. "I'll catch up with you guys," he called back to Pete and Chloe.  
  
Once behind closed doors, Lex returned a serious look to his face. He paced for a few minutes. "Can I trust them?"  
  
"For now," Clark told him. "Chloe will expect you to keep your word about the scoop."  
  
"And I will," Lex assured. "I'm not sure it was a smart idea to let your friends in on the secret, but I'm also not the evil man this town would like to portray me as."  
  
"I know, Lex," Clark's face seemed to be genuine. His statement earlier was true. Where Lex was concerned, Clark had a strange soothing effect on him.  
  
Lex looked into Clark's eyes for a minute. He seemed to be searching for something. Answers. Peace or just plain understanding. It was unclear, but Lex felt that Clark was the only person he could trust right then.  
  
"There's more to the story," he finally said walking behind his desk to a television monitor. "The security camera I had installed after I knew about level three caught these pictures a short while before the hole was discovered."  
  
Clark watched as the tape played a picture of an empty hallway that lead to what he knew was the fake broom closet. It was a few seconds before he saw the images of two shadowed figures walking from that direction. Within seconds, the image went black.  
  
Clark stood dumb-founded for a second.  
  
"Something came out of that hole, Clark," Lex told him. "Something or someone who destroyed the camera on their way out."  
  
"I saw something," Clark stated.  
  
"What?" Lex asked.  
  
"I saw something on the tape, just before it went black," Clark told him. "It was probably just one frame, but I think I saw a face."  
  
Lex looked at him with concern. "I watched the tape over and over again, Clark. There is no face." He was sure.  
  
"Trust me, Lex," Clark lowered himself into a chair. "There was a face."  
  
Lex picked up the remote control and rolled the tape back, frame by frame while watching for Clark's reactions.  
  
"There's nothing there, Clark," he said looking back at him.  
  
"Keep going."  
  
A few more frames and then an image seemed to block the camera's view.  
  
"It's a complete blur," Lex announced.  
  
Clark stood up and walked over to the video recorder and began to fiddle with some of the controls. He adjusted them as best as he could.  
  
"I still can't make anything out, Clark," Lex told him.  
  
"It's a face, Lex," Clark insisted. "I can't make out whose, but I swear to you it is a face."  
  
Lex pulled a disc out from his desk draw and placed it into the DVD burner attached to the television. It took only a few seconds to burn the image onto the disc. He pulled it out, and the two of them turned to the computer on his desk. He slipped the disc into his driver and tapped a few keys on his keyboard.  
  
"I have a high resolution imagine device in this. It's even more advanced than the ones you find with those high priced scanners," He explained to Clark. "This should only take a second."  
  
True to his word, the image came up on the screen, and with each tap of the keys, it became a clearer and a more defined picture. After a few minutes, Clark stood back from the desk with a gasp.  
  
Lex looked up at him. "What--what is it?" He had never seen Clark shy away like that.  
  
Clark stood silent and watched as Lex continued to clear the image. It was a few seconds more when he announced. "You're right, Clark," he said. "It is a face. But who's?"  
  
He gave few more clicks of the keys, and Lex began to see the image that Clark had already identified. "Wait a minute," he said with a few more clicks. "This can't be right." A few more taps were made on the keys. "Oh, my Lord."  
  
It was a few more taps before Lex stopped. He too took a step back. "This can't be right, Clark," he said with a soft almost defeated voice. "This can't be right." He kept looking at Clark and back at the monitor.  
  
They both stood transfixed at the image on the screen. The image of one of the men who had emerged from the blue orb in Level Three. His face was shockingly familiar. His face was...  
  
"Me," Lex said. "It's my face."  
  
He leaned back in to take a closer look. "How could this be possible, Clark? I know that girl who impersonated me a few months ago is still locked up. I keep tabs on all the freaks of the week," He let that little bit of information slip out. "How could someone else have my face? Someone who seems to have come through some type of trans-dimensional portal in the basement and knows about the companies hidden cameras."  
  
Clark did not say a word. He seemed to be trying to bury himself in the corner of the room. A few beads of sweat appeared on his face and he looked to be slightly trembling. Lex saw him, but he was more interested with the face and did not say a word. He returned his interest to the screen.  
  
"What is it, Clark?" He finally asked. "What do you see?"  
  
Clark could not find his voice to speak.  
  
A few more taps, and Lex noticed more. "Wait a minute. I have hair in this picture. I have bright red hair like my mom use to have. Like I had when I was a kid," Lex tapped the keys again. "And I have what looks like a pony tail. I not only have hair, I have lots of it."  
  
The realization of what he was looking at finally hit Lex. "There is someone who looks like me in Smallville," he said. "Someone from God only knows where."  
  
After pulling himself together he looked over to the corner where Clark was pacing and trying to contain his emotions. Lex walked over to his friend.  
  
"What is it, Clark?" He asked him softly. "What do you know? Who is this guy?"  
  
Clark looked at him with large baseball sized eyes. Trying to control the fear that was building up inside of him, he said the words. "My worst nightmare," he said with a shaky voice.  
  
Lex could tell that he was not over reacting. He took a long look back at his own face on the computer screen.  
  
To be continued 


	2. Chapter 2

1 Something Wicked This Way Comes: Chapter Two  
  
Martha Kent was sitting at the counter in the kitchen reading the morning newspaper and sipping on her second cup of coffee with the almond cream flavoring, when she heard the door open. She looked up and saw Clark enter the house. "That was quick," she shot him a smile. "I thought you, Chloe, and Pete were going to the Beanery after the plant."  
  
"Something came up," he said in a low voice.  
  
Martha grew concern for her son and she placed the paper and coffee on the counter. "Clark, is something wrong? Did something happen at the plant?"  
  
He remained silent and turned his head looking around the room like he had never been there before. He scanned the place for a few minutes while Martha watched him with great interest. "Where's Dad?" He finally asked.  
  
"Out in the barn," she replied with worry in her voice. "Is there something you need to talk to us about?"  
  
Clark walked over to his mother and eyed her like he had never done before. He seemed to be studying her.  
  
"Clark," she stood up. "Your behavior is starting to make me nervous. What is wrong with you?"  
  
The young man reached out and grabbed her by her shirt collar. "Where is your son?"  
  
"Oh, my Lord," Martha gasped. "Who are you?"  
  
"Where is your son?" He demanded lifting her off the ground with great ease like only Clark could.  
  
"Jonathan!" She screamed out in fear.  
  
The young man just stared up at her with a blank look on his face.  
  
"Please, who ever you are," she pleaded. "Let me down and I'll try to help you."  
  
"Tell me where Clark Kent is," he ordered in the same flat tone he had used since he entered the room. "I must find Clark Kent."  
  
"He's not here," she told him. "He and his friends went to town this morning."  
  
"When will he return?"  
  
"I don't..." Martha started just as the door open and Jonathan Kent walked in.  
  
"Did you call for me?" He asked before he looked up and saw the sight of Clark holding his mother in the air. "Clark?"  
  
The younger man turned his head to Jonathan.  
  
"It's not Clark," Martha let out with a cry.  
  
"Where is Clark?" He now asked the older man with gritted teeth.  
  
"Put my wife down and we will help you with what ever is wrong," Jonathan said as he took a defensive pose.  
  
The double for Clark looked back at Martha and after a second of thought, released his grip dropping her to the ground with a thud.  
  
Jonathan cautiously walked over to his wife and took her in his arms. "Are you all right?" He asked.  
  
She wrapped her arms around him. "He's as strong as Clark." she replied with gasping breaths.  
  
They both looked up at the man who loomed over them. "Where is your son?"  
  
"He's not here," Jonathan explained. "He went to town earlier. He won't be back for hours."  
  
The fake Clark picked Jonathan up in the air much like he had Martha and then tossed him five feet across the room and he slammed against the refrigerator so hard, the door broke one of it's hinges and left a large indent where he impacted. His body slumped to the floor in a heap of flesh.  
  
"Jonathan!" Martha screamed as she rushed to his side. She cupped his head in her hands and rested it on her lap. "You animal!" She yelled at the man. "What do you want from us?"  
  
"Perhaps a little hospitality," a voice came from the door. "Since my young friend and I will be your guest while we wait for your son."  
  
Martha looked up with even more shock than before. "Lex," she spoke under her breath.  
  
The young red haired man with a ponytail walked into the room. "I see we have met before," he gave her an evil grin. "It would seem I have a copy in this Smallville as well. This should be interesting."  
  
She could only look on in horrid fear.  
  
  
  
Clark sat in Lex's office chair as Lex settled on the edge of his desk. Clark was drinking the small cup of water that Lex had just given him, and he waited for Clark to catch his breath before he asked. "So what is this all about, Kent?"  
  
Clark looked up at his friend with confused puppy dog eyes. "You'll think it's crazy when I tell you."  
  
"Smallville has cornered the market on crazy, Clark," Lex told him. "It can't be any crazier than me watching myself break into my own plant with a full head of hair," he ran his hand over his baldhead to make his point.  
  
Clark took a deep breath and tried to sort the facts out in his head before he spoke. "Do you remember Christmas morning when you stayed over our house after the car crash?" He asked softly. "When I woke up from that nightmare?"  
  
"Sure," Lex thought back. "I remember it scared the life out of you."  
  
Clark's eyes drifted to the monitor. "And he's why," Clark pointed to the picture still on the computer screen.  
  
Lex looked at the monitor and then at Clark. "This guy was in your dream?"  
  
"I thought it was a dream when I woke up, but while I was in it, it seemed so real," Clark explained. "I thought I was in some type of alternate universe while I was in it, and now I think I was."  
  
Lex stood up and walked around the desk rubbing his hand on his mouth and chin. "Alternate universe?" He said with a hint of disbelief.  
  
"Yeah," Clark seemed like he was trying to convince himself as well. "Remember how I said I was in a Smallville where the meteors never came and the Kent's never found me in that corn field?"  
  
"Wasn't it like that Frank Capra movie you said?" Lex asked in turn.  
  
"Right," Clark agreed. "It was like I had never been born. Or at least never lived in Smallville. No one knew who I was, and every trace of the meteors or me had been erased. Everything was different there."  
  
"I remember," Lex replied. "I still haven't figured out why you and the meteors would be so connected."  
  
"I'm not sure," Clark lied. "All I know is that the Kents found me in a corn field, and it was assumed that my real folks were in with all the strangers who were killed passing through town that day for the big game."  
  
"So in this dream world, you just went home with your real parents, and never lived in Smallville." Lex reasoned out.  
  
"I have to assume that since I never met my self, over there." Clark agreed. He could not tell his friend the truth of how he was brought to Earth in the hail of the meteor showers. In the other world, the meteors missed Earth and they, along with Clark's rocket ship, melted into the sun.  
  
"Alright, so we know why you were not there, but this guy was?" Lex asked.  
  
"This guy," Clark shivered just looking at the picture. "He was the other Smallville's version of you."  
  
Lex paced before the desk. "The version of me you didn't want to talk about when you woke up," he recalled. "You said you didn't want to think about it."  
  
Clark saw the same hurt in Lex's face that he saw that night when he first told him. "He was pure evil, Lex," He said. "For some reason he was nothing like you. He was like the devil incarnated."  
  
Lex studied him for a moment. "Everyone else was basically the same in your dream, but not me?"  
  
"Yeah," Clark agreed, half sure of himself. He had been warned that the differences might not be as far apart as he thought, but he was sure he knew his real friend, and the two versions of Lex were nothing alike.  
  
Lex paced again. "This doesn't make sense, Clark," he commented. "If it was all a dream, your dream, then why is this guy here in the real world? In my real world,"  
  
"Like I said," Clark repeated. "In the dream I was sure I was actually awake in another dimension. It was not until I woke up that I determined that it must have been a dream."  
  
"Well, how did you get there?" Lex questioned.  
  
"I was told that it was an answer to a prayer," he told him. "I was asking God if the world would be better with out me, and he answered it."  
  
Lex looked at him with disbelief. "You prayed yourself into an alternate reality?"  
  
Clark smiled sheepishly. "I guess," he muttered.  
  
"Why can't you light a candle like everyone else?"  
  
Clark shrugged his shoulders. "I was told that it was a gift. God wanted me where I am for a reason, and he wanted me to know that."  
  
"Gees, Kent," Lex rubbed his head. "Don't tell me you been inhaling green rock fumes like those freaks who keep showing up around here."  
  
"I don't know how it happen, Lex," Clark said with determined resolve. "But that is the only explanation I have for the same guy in my dreams being here. He tried to kill me back then, and I'm sure he'll try the same here, 'or worse,' He thought to himself.  
  
"Alright," Lex leaned on the desk with disgust. "Let's just forget for a minute about how he got here. Judging from your description, I hardly think it was in answer to his prayer."  
  
Clark shot him a quick snide smile.  
  
Lex shrugged off the urge to lean over and jokingly smack his friend. "The fact of the matter is that he is here. Now all we need to know, is what does he want?"  
  
"Me," Clark face became very serious. "He thinks I have secrets that he could market." That was only half the story. The alternate Lex knew that Clark had super strength and invulnerability, and he was looking to acquire these traits for himself.  
  
"He thinks little farm boy Clark Kent has some kind of marketable secrets?" Lex asked.  
  
"Hey, you're the one who's obsessed with knowing how I survived when you hit me with your car," Clark reminded him. "Don't you still have it in your basement?"  
  
Lex gave him a suspicious look. "So you think this guy created a dimensional transport machine just so he could come and find you?"  
  
"Well he may have figured out that we come from different realities, and he's trying to work it to his gain," Clark explained.  
  
"Surprisingly enough, I might have considered the same thing," Lex agreed.  
  
"No, you wouldn't," Clark shot back. "You are nothing like that guy."  
  
Lex stared at him for a moment. It was unclear whom Clark was trying to convince of that fact, Lex or himself.  
  
He ignored the matter and thought out loud. "Where do we begin looking for him?" Lex asked.  
  
"I don't remember how much I told him about myself or Smallville. I did talk about you,"  
  
"Really?" Lex tried to control a small smile.  
  
"Well, since he was you, it seemed like a good topic," Clark flipped his arms.  
  
"Then that is where we will start the search," Lex said. "We'll go to the mansion first."  
  
"Okay," Clark stood up and the two headed out the door.  
  
"I tell you, Kent, only you could help open a portal to an alternate reality," Lex remarked from behind Clark as they walked up the hall.  
  
"Hey how do you think I feel?" Clark joked. "The Lex of my dreams turns out to be a homicidal maniac."  
  
Lex shook as head pulling on his coat. "There is so much wrong with that comment I won't even go into it. I just hope I can get the image out of my head before I start getting nightmares."  
  
  
  
Lana Lang found herself at the Kent's kitchen door and knocked softly. She held a small candy tin in her hands. She seemed to find more reasons for her to make the trip over to the Kent's home, that she even wondered if there might be an ulterior motive. After a few seconds, Clark answered the door.  
  
"Hi, Clark," She gave him her best smile. "Is your Mom home?"  
  
"She's busy," he answered with darting eyes that kept looking around.  
  
"Oh," Lana said noticing his odd behavior. "Well, my Aunt Nell asked me to bring over these cookies we had left over from our Saint Patrick's Day party last weekend. She thought you might enjoy them before they go bad."  
  
Clark looked down at the tin.  
  
"I guess I can just give them to you," she held them out.  
  
His hands started to shake when he held them up to her. His breath became slightly shallow and his stomach became queasy.  
  
"Are you alright?" She asked with concern.  
  
He braced himself against the doorframe. "What are you doing to me?" He asked.  
  
"Clark?" She questioned with haunted eyes.  
  
Clark saw the emerald green stone that hung around her neck. "What is that thing?" He pointed as sweat rolled down his face.  
  
Lana looked down at her necklace made with a piece of the meteor stone that killed her parents. "Oh, my necklace," she pointed out. "I know I put it away, but I thought I would wear it for the holiday, what with it being green and all."  
  
"Destroy it," he attempted to reach for it as she backed away.  
  
"Clark," she slapped his hand away. "Don't you dare!"  
  
He swung at her and knocked the tin from her hand. She jumped back and stared with disbelief.  
  
"Lana!" Martha's voice came from the living room. "Run!"  
  
Lana looked behind Clark and saw Martha struggling with a red headed Lex Luthor as she tried to make her way into the kitchen.  
  
The sight shocked Lana. "Mrs. Kent."  
  
Lex grabbed with his gloved hands at Martha, and she was able to push him away with a violent thrust. He made one more attempt where she saw her opening, and kneed him in the groin. He fell to the floor with a yelp.  
  
Martha made her way to the door and pushed the frail Clark aside. "These are imposters," she told Lana in a rushed voice. "Run and get Clark. Warn him."  
  
Lex grabbed her again and tried to pull her back in while Martha held on to the doorframe with dear life. "Run!" She screamed at the startled Lana. "Jonathan will die if you don't."  
  
Lex was able to give her one strong tug and she fell back into the house hitting the floor with a thud. She cried from the pain and was sure her wrist had been broken.  
  
Lana screamed when she saw Lex's hand reach for her. She slammed the screen door shut causing his arm to go through the mesh. Seeing her chance, she turned and ran away up the road.  
  
Lex grasped his injured hand and looked down as the recovering Clark. "You fool, what is wrong with you? She got away."  
  
"Sorry, sir," he got up. "She was wearing a necklace that effected me some how."  
  
"A necklace?" Lex questioned.  
  
"It was like a green rock," Clark Told.  
  
"You never had any reaction to any of the minerals back in the lab," Lex reminded him.  
  
"This was unlike anything I have ever seen before," the younger man added.  
  
Martha sat nursing her hand on the floor and smiled inwardly. These two may look like Clark and Lex, but they had no knowledge of the meteor fragments and their affect on Clark or someone like him. That fact also made her worried. This young man not only had Clark's face and powers, but was like him in almost every other way as well. It was like seeing the little boy who was her son, scared and being lead around by Lex.  
  
Lex turned his attention down at her. "Something tells me that you may know about this green rock, but I am sure you are not willing to tell, are you?"  
  
She looked up at him with disgust.  
  
"No matter," he grinned. "I know where to get one, and I need you and what is left of your husband in tact to use against your son," he turned back to Clark. "Go find the girl and bring her back with the rock. Burry it in her heart if it will help you transport it."  
  
"Sure," Clark regained his breath. He shot out the door like a streak of light.  
  
Lex squatted down in front of Martha. "You have been a very bad girl, Mrs. Kent," he grinned again. "Little demonstrations like that could prove dangerous in the future."  
  
"I think all that red hair has destroyed your brain," she hissed.  
  
He grinned, not saying a word.  
  
She too remained silent and held her arm close.  
  
He looked down at her broken wrist. "I bet that really hurts, hah?" He reached up and slapped her injured hand briskly. "You might want to be more careful."  
  
Martha let out a scream of pain. The scream almost woke Jonathan, who was still out cold on the sofa, from his earlier injuries.  
  
  
  
Lana was running as fast as she could, and didn't hear Clark coming up behind her. He was standing before her faster than she had realized. She stopped dead in her tracks.  
  
"Clark!" She screamed.  
  
"You need to go back," he said in a soft voice. "Please don't fight me." The look on his face seemed sincere, but going back was not an option to for her.  
  
"Who are you?" She cried.  
  
"Please, miss," he reached out a gentle hand. "Mr. Luthor will find you and do horrible things if you don't come with me."  
  
"No," Lana fell to the ground in tears turning her face from his. "Why are you doing this, Clark? I thought we were friends."  
  
"Perhaps we could be more," he said. A twinge of interest for this girl was overcoming the young man, and he did not fully understand it. "I won't let him hurt you."  
  
Unaware, Lana had run to a small stream near the Kent's farm, and she opened her eyes long enough to see jagged rocks all around a once makeshift campfire. Some even had the faint green glow, like her necklace.  
  
"Please," The young man said again reaching out a hand to help her up. "Just come back to the house and I will take care of you."  
  
Lana looked up at him from the corner of her eyes. "Do you mean it?" She asked with controlled sobs.  
  
"Of course," he smiled down at her. "Mister Luthor is not interested in you. He just wants the Kent boy."  
  
Lana straighten her back and stopped crying. Her hair was scattered all around her face, and the tears left dirty marks down her cheeks. "You'll take care of me?" She gave him a sweet smile.  
  
He smiled back and helped her to her feet. He ignored the effect the necklace seemed to be having on him. The effects were even stronger as he leaned over.  
  
Once they were both standing up facing each other, he spoke again. "I'll take care of you."  
  
Lana smiled coyly at him and swaged her hips. "No offence." she said moving a hand from behind her back. "But I prefer to take care of myself right now."  
  
With swift swing using all her body weight, she caught Clack off guard and smashed one of the jagged green meteor stones against his temple. She screamed as he fell back in pain.  
  
"Arghh!" He screamed hitting the ground. Blood was spilling all over the place.  
  
Lana dropped the rock and gasped for air. "I'm sorry, Clark," she yelled and took off running again. She made no attempt to look back or to even consider how badly she had hurt this person who looked like her close friend.  
  
He tried to focus his eyes, while he rested in a pool of his own blood. The sight of all the red from his own body was startling to him. He gasped in pain and fear. "Mister Luthor," he called. "Help me." His eyes became even more blurred from the tears welling up.  
  
  
  
Clark and Lex drove by a dazed Chloe and Pete at a reckless high speed in Lex's Porsche.  
  
Chloe turned to Pete. "Was that who I think it was?" She asked.  
  
"Clark and Lex," he confirmed. "Looks like they had better things to do than meet up with us." He shrugged.  
  
She followed the path with her eyes. "I think they are driving to Lex's mansion," Chloe told him. "Looks like they are not being completely open with all their information after all."  
  
"Well what do we do?" Pete asked.  
  
"We have to go to Lex's," Chloe decided. "Since your wheels are in the shop, we'll have to hoof it and hope we get there before the fun starts."  
  
She pulled him by the collar and they began to run in the direction of the speeding car.  
  
  
  
Clark didn't comment on the speed Lex was driving even after they had slowed to enter the gates to the mansion's grounds. He simply climbed out and followed him into the house. The entire building was quiet. The complex seemed deserted.  
  
"Where's the staff?" Clark asked his friend.  
  
"I wish I knew," Lex said as they entered the foyer cautiously. "They should be cleaning and doing whatever else they do around here."  
  
They slowly walked up the hall and inspected all the rooms they passed.  
  
It took a few minutes, and then at the study, Lex saw two legs sticking out from behind the pool table. "Clark," he whispered to his friend checking the door a few feet away. "Someone has been here."  
  
Clark ran over to him. Lex pointed to the legs and the two walked into the room slowly. Clark gently pushed himself ahead of Lex and rounded the corner of the table. He gasped and turned away with a start.  
  
Lex leaned pass him and looked down at the man who lay in a pool of blood on the floor. "Oh God." He gagged. Clark caught him before he fell forward. He fought to regain his composure and his gagging reflexes.  
  
Clark held Lex's shoulders back and he peaked back over his own shoulders to look down at the man. "Who..." He started to ask, with a heavy breath. "Who is that?"  
  
"James." Lex answered leaning against Clark. "He was my father's butler until he was sent here to keep an eye on me for the old man."  
  
Clark turned back and looked again. "They slit his throat, Lex," The words broke in his voice. "Looks like he's been here for a few hours."  
  
"Good God, Clark," Lex groaned. "These are my employees. I'm responsible for them. What have these maniacs done to the rest of my staff?" Lex was trying hard to regain his composure.  
  
"We'll find them, Lex," Clark said. His eyes drifted for a moment, and then Lex felt Clark's grip stiffen on his shoulders. He looked up and saw the horror in Clark's face. He had never seen this in his friend before.  
  
"What is it, Clark," He noticed that Clark was staring at the wall behind him. Slowly Lex turned around and saw what Clark was seeing. In large bold red Letters, made in the blood of the dead man on the floor, was the name 'CLARK'.  
  
"Jesus," Lex gasped.  
  
Clark grabbed Lex's arms so hard to hold him up; Lex thought he might rip them off if he were not careful. He help to hold him up at his elbows and looked at the pain in Clark's eyes.  
  
"Hey," Lex pulled his face away from his stare towards the wall. "You didn't do this, Clark." He tried to assure his friend, "This is not your fault."  
  
Clark wanted to scream, cry, set off in a rage and throw up all in the same instance. His emotions were attacking him all at once. He struggled to keep his composure, but was failing miserably.  
  
"Clark!" Lex screamed into his face. "Don't do this. Stay with me!"  
  
Clark moaned with a sound that was part rage, part fear and partly a cry for help. He fell into Lex, and they helped each other over to the pool table and leaned against it.  
  
They both stood jittering for a few seconds trying to regain control of their own impulses. This was far worst than either of them could have imagined. Clark felt like he had caused the man's death himself. How could a simple wish have turned into a nightmare of reality?  
  
"What do we do now?" Lex asked.  
  
"I don't know," Clark spoke between breaths. "We can't go to the police with this."  
  
"Why not?" Lex asked sarcastically. "Excuse me officer, but a man was just murdered by me in my house, only it wasn't me. It was my evil twin from an alternate reality. Please find and arrest him."  
  
Clark wiped his hand across his own face. "This is so wicked. No one would believe something like this could ever happen."  
  
"I'm living it, and I don't believe it," Lex commented.  
  
Clark patted his shoulder. "We need to find the rest of the staff, Lex."  
  
Lex looked up at Clark who seemed to regain his composure allot quicker than he. "Sure," He said under his breath. "Let's start with the wine cellar."  
  
Lex took one last look back at his old servant before leaving the room. He remembered the first time he met James when he was only seven. He had never told the faithful employee how grateful he was for all the years of service. Now he never would be able to.  
  
Clark looked back into the room and saw Lex gazing down at the body. "We have to go, Lex," He called softly. "We can't help him, but we can save the rest of the staff."  
  
"Yeah," Lex took a deep breath. We wiped his hand across his face. "I'm coming." He followed after Clark.  
  
  
  
Lana was just about out of energy reserves as she tried to make her way along the road to town. She thought of running home to Nell, but didn't want to risk the rouge Clark following her to her Aunt. She chose instead to try and get to town and attempt to find Clark or at least the police.  
  
Then just in the clearing, she saw it. The Luthor's Scottish mansion loomed in the horizon. She said a short silent prayer and asked God to get her there before the evil Clark or Lex found her. Using the last of her strength, she made a slow steady sprint towards the grounds.  
  
  
  
"Clark," Lex's voice called from the other end of the hall in the mansion.  
  
Clark looked around the corner and saw his friend approaching. "I found the staff in the storm cellar," He told him. "I let them out the back way and told them to run for cover until this all blows over."  
  
"Do they know what happen up here?" Clark asked.  
  
"No," Lex stopped in front of him. "They said that they were all grabbed from behind and chloroformed before they knew what happen. Only the second floor maid heard James' scream." Lex tried to show no remorse, but Clark knew him well enough to see the subtle hints of pain in his eyes.  
  
Clark's face curled in distress. "I just thank God no one else was hurt," He said taking a last look up the staircase. "I checked the rest of the house, and it's all cleared."  
  
"Then where did he go?" Lex asked.  
  
"Perhaps that is a question best answered by you, Lex." Clark told him. "You have the same intellect, if not temperament. Try to think evil, and decide where he would go next."  
  
Lex gave him a jokingly evil eye. "Let's hope that it's a stretch for me." Lex smiled.  
  
A quick knock came to the door just behind Clark. He again gently pushed Lex aside and reached for the knob. He gave it a quick jerk and surprised Chloe and Pete who were standing behind it.  
  
"Ahh!" Pete yelled. "Good gravy, Clark. You scared the life out of us."  
  
"Sorry," Clark apologized with shuffled feet. "Things are a little jumpy around here right now."  
  
"So what is going on with you two crime busters?" Chloe gave them her suspicious eye.  
  
"Please, Chloe," Clark tried to stall her. "This is no time for your instincts to kick into over drive."  
  
"We have a real problem going here, Chloe," Lex told her. "We need to protect people, and keep them out of this."  
  
"Oh come on, Lex," she walked into the hall. "We already know more than most of Smallville. Level with us and tell us the whole story."  
  
"Not now, Chloe," Clark pulled her away from Lex by the back of her jacket. "We need to get going."  
  
Chloe looked up at him with hurt eyes. "Sure Clark. The old Lana and Lex shove off. We understand."  
  
"It's not like that," Clark pleaded with her.  
  
"Lana," Lex called, looking passed them.  
  
She stood bracing herself against the doorframe, short of breath.  
  
"Lana," Clark ran to her side and tried to hold her up despite his queasy stomach from approaching her.  
  
She pushed him aside and ran into Lex's arms. "Oh, Lex," she cried into his chest.  
  
They were all surprised by her move to ignore Clark and embrace Lex. She cried unable to speak for several minutes as they all looked on.  
  
  
  
The three men escorted Lana into the sitting room while Chloe went to get her a drink of water. Lana clung to Lex like Clark wished she would to him, but he noticed that she was wearing the meteor necklace, so he made no further efforts to approach her closer than five feet. He watched from the opposite sofa as she tried to catch her breath.  
  
After a few minutes, Lex brushed the hair from her face and asked. "Are you ready to tell us what happen?"  
  
"I think so," She glanced over at Clark with a suspicious eye. "I was attacked," she said.  
  
"Oh, my God," Clark jumped from his seat. "By who?"  
  
Lana looked up with hurt eyes. "You."  
  
As quickly as he stood, Clark fell back into his seat.  
  
"Clark?" Lex tried to get a handle on the situation. "Clark has been with me for the last several hours," He told her. "I can assure you he didn't attack you."  
  
"Did he hurt you?" Pete asked. "I mean who ever the guy was."  
  
"No," she told them. "I got away."  
  
Chloe walked in with a glass of water. "Sorry it took so long," she announced her entrance. "I had to wait for the bus to drive me over to the kitchen." She handed Lana the glass. "Oh, and I called Whitney like you asked me to." she said.  
  
Clark shot her his 'What were you thinking?' look.  
  
"Thank you," Lana took the glass. "I'm sorry guys, but everything was so weird."  
  
"Tell us from the beginning," Lex coached.  
  
"I went to the Kent's house," she started taking a second to glance up to see where Clark was still sitting.  
  
The words alone made Clark stiffen with fear.  
  
"Someone answered the door, only it wasn't whom I thought," she continued. "He looked just like you, Clark." Again she looked over at him, only her eyes seemed more understanding.  
  
Clark and Lex's eye caught for a moment.  
  
"He was acting real strange and tried to grab at my necklace," Lana went on. "Then I heard Martha scream from the other room. She was telling me to run and get you Clark. She said that this guy wasn't really you."  
  
"Oh, my God, Ma," Clark gasped.  
  
"That's not all," she looked at Lex. "There was another guy, and he looked like you, Lex. Only he had long red hair."  
  
"I have to go save my folks," Clark stood up.  
  
"Wait, Clark," Lana stopped him. "It's a trap. The other guy who looked like you ran after me, but I was able to fight him off. I think I hit him with a meteor rock. They are holding your parents so you will come and save them. I think it's really you they want."  
  
Clark began pacing. "I need to get over there and put an end to this," he said. He thought and then asked. "Where was my father?"  
  
"I think in the living room." Lana said with big watery eyes. "I think they hurt him bad. Your Mom said his life depended on me finding you."  
  
"We need to call the police," Pete suggested. "They can surround the place."  
  
"While the crazy guys kill my folks," Clark spoke harshly.  
  
"The police would not be a very idea right now," Lex added trying to calm the situation. "They are liable to arrest me and Clark before the bad guys."  
  
"Who are these people?" Chloe asked. "And why are they dead ringers for the two of you?"  
  
Clark and Lex shot each other another look.  
  
"This has to do with that worm hole thing, doesn't it?" Chloe asked with a look that demanded answers. "That blue ball on level three."  
  
"Stay out of this, Chloe." Clark warned. "People could get seriously hurt."  
  
"People already have, Clark," she stood up to him. "Who are these people?"  
  
"They are us," Lex said sorting out the words in his head before he spoke them out loud. "They are Clark and myself, only from another dimension."  
  
Chloe looked at him in disbelief. "Alternate dimension?"  
  
"That's where the portal leads to," Clark explained softly.  
  
"Whoa, how do you know this?" Pete asked.  
  
"Because I have been there," Clark explained. "I thought it was a dream at the time, but I somehow slipped into a alternate universe and was able to find my way back still believing it was a dream."  
  
"His presence there must have left some type of signature wave for my alternate persona to follow him back here," Lex went on to describe. "He found a way to teleport or worm hole his way between the two worlds."  
  
"This is so sci-fi," Pete's face lit up with excitement. "Too bad it doesn't happen with my Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader's dream."  
  
"Stop that," Clark yelled at him. "This is not a joke, Pete." His face was filled with remorse. "This guy tried to kill me the last time we met, and he's come here to try again. Only this time my folks and all of you are at risk too."  
  
He turned and ran for the door. "I have to save my parents," he said. "Everyone stay here."  
  
Lex ran as fast as he could after Clark and could barely keep up until they reached the door.  
  
"Kent!" He yelled grabbing his arm. "Wait up."  
  
"I have to go, Lex," Clark's voice was breaking with pain. "I am my parent's only hope."  
  
"It's a trap, Clark."  
  
"I have to take that risk," Clark pulled himself away and opened the door, where he found Whitney Fordman just about to ring the bell.  
  
"Clark?" He questioned wide-eyed. "Chloe said Lana was here, hurt."  
  
"She's okay, Whitney," Lex answered for him. "She's in the sitting room with Pete and Chloe." He pointed down the corridor.  
  
Whitney walked passed them and made his way up the hall.  
  
Lex turned his attention back to Clark. "We need to go together," he said. "I can set up a diversion."  
  
"I don't want you hurt, Lex," Clark told him.  
  
"Ah, Lex?" Whitney voiced called from behind them.  
  
"Second door on your right," Lex called back with out taking his eyes off Clark. He knew Clark was more than able to loose him at any second, but he was unsure how it kept happening.  
  
"Thanks," Whitney sighed. "A house this large should have names on the door." He muttered under his breath.  
  
"Clark, I'm serious," Lex warned to him. "You can't go in there alone. There are two of them now. Apparently he found your double."  
  
"I don't understand how," Clark questioned, more to himself. A bit of confusion hung in his voice.  
  
"You need me, and you know it," Lex demanded. "Standing right here earlier you said that he and I have the same thought pattern. You may be able to muscle up to him, but I can match his wit. Let me help, Clark."  
  
Clark's face was aching with remorse.  
  
Lex grabbed his arms and shook him slightly. "I know what ever he did to you the last time hurt you bad, Clark. I can see it every time you look in my face right now, but I am not that guy. I would never hurt you. You can trust me. You need me in this."  
  
Clark turned his face away. He didn't want anyone else hurt like he was. The pain was not the worst of it, but the betrayal by a friend cut deep in Clark.  
  
"You're not alone this time, Clark," Lex said softly but with firm resolve. "You are not alone."  
  
After a few long moments in thought, he finally said. "Okay," Clark agreed not wanting to waist anymore time on this matter. "Let's go," They ran out the door together.  
  
  
  
Pete and Chloe left Whitney alone with Lana for a few minutes and roamed the halls of the mansion. "What do you think is really going on here?" Chloe asked her friend.  
  
"I don't know," He told her. "Clark is not the type for tall tales, and with all the strange things around Smallville, I don't think we can excuse anything. We saw the blue orb ourselves, and Lana wouldn't make something up about Clark attacking her. She was really freaked out by him."  
  
"I just feel so helpless here," Chloe spat. "Like we are baby sitting Lana or something."  
  
"Clark wouldn't want us to leave her alone."  
  
"She has her prom king," Chloe pointed out. "I just wish Clark would let us in on the big scoops once and a while."  
  
"Ever the reporter, Chloe," Pete laughed.  
  
"I just feel we need to be doing something to help the Kents."  
  
"And Clark," Pete gave her a coy smile.  
  
"Well, he is a Kent," She twirled her eyes.  
  
"Okay, I'm in," Pete was busting to help too. "What do we do first?"  
  
"We go to the Kent farm," Lana said coming out of the study with Whitney by her side. "Clark and Lex may be in over their heads in this one."  
  
"Are you sure you want to go back there?" Chloe asked her.  
  
"Yes," She nodded, still a little unsure of herself. "Clark has saved each one of us more than once. It's time we repay the favor."  
  
"Then we're all in this together," Chloe added with a smile.  
  
"I think you're all nuts," Whitney commented. "But if Lana is going through with this, I'm in with the rest of you. We can take my truck"  
  
They too all left the mansion for the Kent farm.  
  
To Be Continued 


	3. chapter 3

1 Something Wicked This Way Comes:  
  
2 Chapter Three  
  
The farm seemed quiet and peaceful from the outside. No one could tell that the Kent's world was falling apart on the inside. Clark slowly made his way across the opened field in clear view of the house. He knew that they were waiting for him, and he made no effort to hide his approach. He could easily run through the house with a flash, but it was unclear how much the evil Lex knew about him, and it was best to keep his powers under wraps to use as a wild card later.  
  
Once he was about ten feet from the front porch, he stopped and tried to pear into the house with his x-ray vision. He could see that Martha was sitting next to Jonathan who lay on the sofa, and Lex was standing in the kitchen.  
  
"Lex!" Clark called. "Come out and leave the Kents family alone!"  
  
The screen door swung open and Lex walked out. "Oh, come on Clark," he grinned. "You aren't letting me have any fun with your parents."  
  
"I'm the one you want." Clark shook at the sight of the red haired Lex coming out of his house. It took all he had to put on a brave front. "Leave the Kents alone and take me."  
  
Lex laughed. "Where would I take you?" He smiled. "And for future references, you can call me Alex," he said. "Lex was a child's name for a child. I'm a man now, Clark."  
  
"What ever, Alex," Clark sneered. "Just get away from my folks and I'll do what ever you want."  
  
"Would that include burning in Hell?" He leered back. "Do you remember this?"  
  
Clark watched in horror as he pulled a large replica of the stun gun he had used on Clark the last time. The jolt had startled him and knocked him for a wallop in their last encounter.  
  
"I can tell by that sweat rolling down your face that you remember," Alex grinned stepping off the porch. "Since you destroyed the last one, I had to build a new one with modifications."  
  
He aimed it like a gun, and a bolt of lightning shot out from the electrical ends and hit Clark dead on, knocking him across the yard through the wall of the barn twenty feet away. "Arghh!" Was all Clark scream.  
  
Alex held the device up in victory. "Ahha," he laughed. "I thought you would get a real charge out of that."  
  
Off to the corner of his eye Alex saw something approaching at an incredible high speed. He turned and saw Lex's Porsche screaming at him with a racing engine. He lost his breath when he noticed his own face behind the steering wheel.  
  
"Lex!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.  
  
The car was close enough for Alex to feel the approaching heat of the radiator when an equally fast force pushed at him from an opposite direction removing him from the path of the killer vehicle. He went speeding into the plowed cornfield.  
  
"Clark?" He looked up at the bloody face of the man who had just rescued him.  
  
"I got back as soon as I could, Mr. Luthor," the younger man said. They were running at top speed when they seemed to loose their balance and tripped into the ground. The fake Clark had managed to roll over and took the brunt of the impact leaving a sixty-foot streak of sand and gravel they had plowed with his body.  
  
Lex was able to bring his car to a screeching halt, only inches from the Kent's thrasher blow. He nearly hit the windshield but was able to hold himself back. He checked his rear view mirror and saw that his nemesis was gone from sight.  
  
"Darn it," he slammed the steering wheel. "Where did he go?"  
  
Clark came stumbling out of the barn holding him self in pain.  
  
"Clark." Lex jumped out of his seat and ran to his friend's side. Clark fell to his knees and Lex grabbed him before he fell forward. "What happen to you, Kent?" Lex asked. "I saw a flash of light and then you were gone."  
  
"He zapped me with some type of stun gun," Clark said with a shaky voice.  
  
Lex saw the hole in the barn made by Clark's body. "Holy crud," he remarked. "How much electricity did he hit you with, and how are you still alive?"  
  
"I don't know," Clark tried to catch his breath. "I'll be fine once I shake this off."  
  
"Well, which way did he go?" Lex asked. "One second I had a dead aim on him, and the next he was gone."  
  
"I don't know." They both looked and scanned the landscape carefully. "I'm sure this is not over yet."  
  
"Clark?" Martha ran out to the porch.  
  
"Mom," Clark jumped up and ran to her giving her a big hug.  
  
"Is it really you?" She asked.  
  
"Yes, Mom." He whispered in her ear. "Rocket ship and all." He gave her a clue to prove who he was.  
  
"Oh, thank God," She pulled him even closer. "Is it over?"  
  
"No," Lex said from the bottom of the steps. "That Lex guy is still out here somewhere."  
  
"Call him Alex." Clark said pulling away from his mother. "He mentioned it, and it will help us keep the two of you separate."  
  
"Sure," Lex nodded. "Wasn't there another one?"  
  
"Yes," Martha agreed. "He looked just like you, Clark," she leaned in. "Right down to the last details," she said giving him a 'you know what I mean' look.  
  
"I was afraid of that," Clark began searching the land again. "That explains how Alex was able to move so quickly."  
  
Lex eyed them suspiciously. "What are you Kents not telling me?" He asked.  
  
"Nothing," Clark lied. "Just be careful of the Clark one. He may be stronger than he looks."  
  
"Your father needs a hospital," Martha said to Clark. "They hurt him really bad, and he hasn't woken up since." The worry was heavy on her face.  
  
"Let me check him out," Clark said leading her into the house. "Keep an eye open and yell if you see anything," he called back to Lex.  
  
"Oh, don't you worry," said Lex, turning in circles. "You'll hear me yell."  
  
Once inside, Martha took Clark to where Jonathan laid motionless on the sofa. Clark used his x-ray vision and scanned him over. "Oh, my God," He gasped. "What did they do to him?"  
  
"The Clark one tossed him against the refrigerator with a great force," she told with tears in her eyes. "How bad is it?"  
  
Clark lowered his head and stared at the floor. "He has a concussion. That's why he won't wake up, but he's probably better that way."  
  
Martha gasped. "Why, what at else is wrong?"  
  
"I think they broke his back, Ma," A tear rolled down his face. "Pa has a cracked spine."  
  
"Oh, Clark," Martha wrapped her arms around her son. She was careful not to let him see her broken wrist.  
  
  
  
Outside, Alex opened his eyes to see that he and his Clark were covered with dirt. Clark had been knocked out from the blunt impact. He pushed himself up to his feet and looked back at the streak they had left.  
  
"You fool," he snarled down at the unconscious man. "You managed to save me and almost kill me all in one swoop." He looked up and saw Lex standing on the porch of the house.  
  
Lex stood ready as he watched him approach. It took a few minutes to reach the yard and he stood off about twenty feet away. It was the first time the two Lexes had a chance to take a good look at each other.  
  
"Oh, my God," Lex stepped down a few steps.  
  
"I might say the same," Alex grinned. "I had wondered if I would run into you." He took a few steps forward. "What have you done with my hair?"  
  
Lex rubbed his hand across his head to remind himself. "I might ask you the same thing," He added.  
  
Their eyes were taking in every detail of the other one. They both stood on the dirt path and began to make small circles around each other. "This is most remarkable," Alex laughed. "I'm identical in almost every way."  
  
"Only I don't look like I should be doing lame 1-800-ATT commercials," Lex remarked.  
  
"Ah, I am witty as ever," Alex smirked. "I hear you still go by the name Lex? How child like"  
  
"And I hear you still are a psychopath," Lex shot back. "How certifiable, like."  
  
"We don't have to be like this," Alex's face grew serious. "We could work together and have everything."  
  
"Not if it includes you hurting the Kents," Lex warned. "Especially Clark. He's off limits."  
  
"Yes," Alex seemed to let down his guard and took a calmer posture. "I have heard you have a fondness for the kid. I don't think you realize how dangerous he really is."  
  
Lex eyed him again with an evil eye. "You're the dangerous one here," he said. "Clark is a good man. He saved my life and I owe him. So don't make he have to stop you."  
  
Alex thought about what Lex said. "Saved your life?" He grinned. "What a convenient roost to get into your good graces. He does seem to be full of surprises."  
  
"Get away from him, Lex," Clark said stepping out of the house with an evil hiss in his voice. "He's crazy. My Mom is inside calling an ambulance because he broke my Dad's back."  
  
"I did no such thing," Alex shot him a coy look. "It was you. Or should I say your double over there." He pointed to the field.  
  
They could see him getting up to his feet in the distance.  
  
"Where did you get him?" Clark asked eying his double.  
  
"Well, I was just heartbroken after you left the last time," Alex said snidely. "I mean you never did tell me how you were able to deflect that bullet not to mention your speed and strength."  
  
Lex looked over at Clark who tried hard not to give anything away with his facial expression.  
  
"But you did leave behind a few gifts," he smirked. "The DNA type."  
  
Clark's blood was boiling.  
  
"It took me several tries, but my doctors were finally able to get the recipe right and a new Clark of my own was born," he told them.  
  
"You mean a clone?" Lex asked.  
  
"The wonders of modern science," Alex laughed. "So you see Clark. It really was you who tried to kill your father. And I don't think he's finished."  
  
"No!" Clark screamed so loud, Lex and Alex had to cover their ears. Before either could even focus an eye, Clark shot off the porch in a flash of light and raced to the field where the clone was standing. When they hit, it made the sound of a thunderclap.  
  
Lex watched in disbelief as the two versions of his friend wrestled as super speed with great ferocity and loud thundering sounds of punches hitting.  
  
Alex saw the look on Lex's face and mused at the sight. "I see your good friend never shared his true abilities with you," he said. "It seems simple little Clark has a few secrets of his own."  
  
Lex turned to him with hate in his eyes. "What did you do to him?"  
  
"Wake up, Lex," Alex rocked forward to make his point. "Clark Kent is some kind of Super Man and he never even told you. His best friend and all."  
  
Lex was at a lost for words and just shook his head.  
  
"Well," Alex shrugged his shoulders. "I guest I'm done with the Kents. I'll just go in and finish them off." He pulled his stun gun from his pocket.  
  
"What?" Lex turned his attention back to him.  
  
"Always clean up your messes," Alex told him. "Didn't father ever teach you that?"  
  
"You can't just kill innocent people." Lex cried.  
  
"Yes, I can," Alex smiled. "Besides, by the time police get here, I'll be long gone. If anyone asks who did it, you will be the one arrested."  
  
"Wait, why did you come here?" Lex tried to stall him. "Just to kill the Kents?"  
  
"And Clark," He said with and amused look. "Now stand back. I don't want your mug shot to have bruises all over it." He raised the stun gun and aimed it at the propane tank next to the house.  
  
"No!" Lex screamed and dived at him knocking them both to the ground.  
  
The lightning bolt hit the beam holding up the overhang of the porch and it lit up with flames.  
  
The two men rolled around in the dirt with Lex trying to get his hands on the stun gun.  
  
"Are you crazy?" He grunted when he gave Alex a punch to the face. "You can't kill people."  
  
"Why not?" Alex pushed him away. "The Kents are the only thing standing in my way right now. With them gone, I can put my plan into effect."  
  
Lex sat in the dirt with disbelief on his face. "What plan could possibly start with you killing a family of dirt farmers?"  
  
"Domination, Lex," he gave an evil grin. "First Smallville, and then the world."  
  
"Great, not only have I not seen a barber in the last ten years on your planet, but I'm delusional too," Lex commented.  
  
"You have no idea what great gifts you have around you, Lex."  
  
"Gifts that Clark and his parents have to die for?" Lex screamed. "What kind of mad man have I become over there?"  
  
Alex stood up to his feet and brushed himself off. "Your friend Clark would not be killed by anything I can throw at him. Haven't I proven that yet? The kid has great powers that I can use for my plans. I have only been able to create one successful clone with the strand of his hair he left behind on my Earth, but just think what I can do with a whole head of that hair. I can make an entire army of super warriors. All who will answer to me and follow my every order."  
  
"Clark would never go alone with such a evil plan," Lex was sure.  
  
"Once I hade his DNA, there would be no further use of the boy, and then I will get rid of him," he gave Lex an evil grin.  
  
Lex also rose to his feet. "You just said Clark could handle anything you have to throw at him," he was trying to dissuade the plan. "He won't be disposed of so easily."  
  
"Earlier I would have agreed to the difficulty of the task, but I now have a fool proof plan." He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a piece of meteor rock.  
  
"A rock?" Lex let out a laugh. "If he can handle a bullet like you said, a rock is not going to stop him."  
  
"This one will," He admired the stone. "I am not yet sure why, but it has an adverse effect on your young friend. My own Clark nearly died just bringing it to me. To us it is harmless, but to Clark, it lets off a radiation that weakens him, and I would bet it would eventually kill him."  
  
Lex eyed the fragment with great interest when they heard a gust of wind approach.  
  
"What was that noise I heard a minute ago?" Clark asked running up next to Lex. He looked like he had just been through a war, but he had been able to put down the weaken clone and race back to try and help his friend.  
  
"Let's try it out," Alex snickered holding up the rock.  
  
"Get out of here, Clark," Lex tried to push him away.  
  
"I'm not going anywhere until we lock this guy up," Clark demanded, stepping forward. His view of Alex was obstructed by Lex who stood before him.  
  
"Just let me handle him," Lex tried to hold him back.  
  
"Not a chance, Lex," Clark tried to move him. "This guy broke my father's back, and he's going to answer to me for it."  
  
"Clark," Lex yelled; just as Clark pushed pass him.  
  
Looking down at Alex's hand, Clark doubled over with a queasy feeling to his mid section. He groaned from the sudden shock to his system.  
  
"This is turning out to be a great party after all," Alex smiled as he looked over at Lex. "Wouldn't you say so?"  
  
Lex looked down with shock in his eyes. "What is going on here, Clark?"  
  
"I told you he wasn't normal," Alex pointed out again. "Your friend has not been so open about himself as you might have believed, Lex."  
  
Clark looked up at him with pleading eyes. "Lex, help me, please."  
  
Lex stood motionless as he watched Clark's skin begin to shrivel.  
  
"Interesting," Alex commented. "It would seem we do not have this particular type of meteor rock on my Earth. If my suspicions are right, that would be because they landed in the Smallville along with the kid here."  
  
Lex was almost motionless as he watched the effects on Clark.  
  
"Please, Lex," Clark grabbed his foot.  
  
Lex knelled down to his friend's side. "You're folks found you in the corn fields after the meteor showers because you came with the rocks. You landed on Earth that day. So when the meteors didn't land on the other Earth, neither did you. That's why there was no Clark on that Earth."  
  
"My, I am the smart one," Alex snickered again. "Even with the follicle challenges, you still have the same intellects as I do."  
  
Lex looked up at him. "You know the effects of the rock," He sneered. "Now put it away before you kill him."  
  
"You do tend to worry," Alex sighed. "The DNA will still be useful even after he is dead."  
  
Clark fell into Lex's arms. "DNA?"  
  
"He's planning to build an entire army of your type," Lex told him. "Like the clone you KO'd in the field."  
  
"Sure, take away all the surprise," Alex said sarcastically. "You have no flare for the dramatic, Lex."  
  
In the distance they could see a pick up truck approaching the house.  
  
"We have more guests," Alex smiled.  
  
Clark struggled to look up. "That's Whitney's truck."  
  
Lex too watched them approach. "Looks like the whole Calvary. "Pete and the girls are with him."  
  
"Lana," Clark forced out.  
  
Lex turned to Alex again. "Put the rock away."  
  
"Are you crazy?" He shot back. "This is my safety blanket. We are leaving, and I am taking my little DNA donor with me."  
  
"He's in no shape to travel."  
  
"He'll adjust," Alex pulled Clark away.  
  
"No," Lex warned. "Take me instead. There are too many for you to escape from. You need someone who is mobile."  
  
"Lex, don't," Clark grunted before passing out.  
  
Lex gave him a worried once over. "See? Besides, I have a car."  
  
Alex looked back at the sports vehicle. "Can't we toss him in the back seat?"  
  
"It's a sports car, it doesn't have a back seat," Lex snapped. "And with out my help, you aren't going to be able to take Clark anywhere."  
  
Alex thought about it for a few seconds.  
  
"They are closing in," Lex reminded him.  
  
Alex picked up the stun gun and aimed it at Lex. "Get in the car."  
  
"This was my idea, remember," Lex sighed as he walked pass him to the sports car.  
  
The air crackled with electricity just before Lex looked back and saw Clark's slumped body shaking from the jolts. "That wasn't necessary," He screamed.  
  
"I'll be the judge," Alex said pushing Lex. "I need to give the clone time to recover and follow before this one recovers. Now get in and drive."  
  
Lex took a short look back before he did as instructed.  
  
  
  
It was nearly a full minute before the truck stopped just feet away from Clark. They all rushed out and ran to him. "Clark," Lana held his head in her arms.  
  
"Are you sure that's the real Clark?" Pete asked.  
  
"There's no gash where I hit the other one on the head," Lana explained.  
  
Chloe stood back and watched Lana hold Clark tenderly as Whitney's jaw stiffened from his place at her side.  
  
"Clark!" Martha came rushing out of the house. She fell to his other side and brushed the hair from his face. "The other Lex hit him with some type of ray gun."  
  
"I'm okay," Clark moaned himself awake.  
  
"Oh, thank God." Martha pulled him into her arms.  
  
"What happened here?" Whitney asked.  
  
"The other Lex took our Lex and drove off," Martha told them.  
  
"Lex tried to get him away from me," Clark sat up with a woozy feeling. "Alex was trying to kill me, and Lex saved my life."  
  
"Oh, no," Pete said as he looked up. "Looks like he left his friend behind."  
  
They all watched as the clone Clark approached from the cornfield. He was staggering and in a weaken state.  
  
"I'll handle it," Clark tried to get up but fell into his mother's and Lana's arm again.  
  
"Sit this one out, Kent," Whitney said walking to the clone. "I owe this guy for what he did to Lana."  
  
"Whitney wait," warned Clark, to no avail. Whitney continued his swagger and stopped in front on the beaten and bleeding Clark.  
  
"Hey, Kent," He said with a smirk. "I've wanted to do this for months now." He clenched his right hand making a fist. "Stay away from my girl." He swung with all his might and nailed a sucker punch to Kent's face. The Clark fell back to the ground once again and Whitney screamed like he never had before.  
  
"Gees, Kent! What are you made of, steel?"  
  
"I said 'Whitney wait,'" Cark repeated softly to himself. "It's not my fault the dumb jock didn't listen."  
  
"The ambulance is coming," Chloe finally spoke. "We need to get you to the hospital, Clark."  
  
"No, take my folks," He said staggering to his feet. "I need to find Lex."  
  
Again he stumbled forward into Martha. He landed on her broken wrist and she winched.  
  
"Mom," He finally saw that she too had been hurt.  
  
"Please, Clark," she touching his face. "Come to the hospital with us. I need you right now." A tear rolled down her face.  
  
"Okay," He reluctantly agreed.  
  
"Don't worry, Kent," Whitney walked up dragging the clone. "This guy will tell us where to find the Luthor's Lex."  
  
"No," Clark said harshly. "No one goes after Alex or Lex until I am ready. You have no idea what type of trouble you are getting into."  
  
"Okay, fine," agreed Whitney. "We'll take this guy into hiding until you get back."  
  
"Here," Lana pulled her necklace from her pocket where she had put it for safekeeping. "I don't know how or why, but this seems to have some type of effect that weakens him." She told him. "Be careful." She kissed Whitney.  
  
Clark was trying too hard not to show the effects the necklace was having on him to care about the kiss.  
  
"Come on, Pete," Whitney said dragging the clone into the barn. "You are on Clark watch with me."  
  
"Sure," Pete said following. "Let us know what happens," he called back to them.  
  
  
  
  
  
The sun had gone down by the time Jonathan was settled into his Intensive Care Unit room in Metropolis General Hospital. The smaller hospital in Smallville had transported him to the city by helicopter to MGH's trauma center. The test and procedures went on for what felt like hours for Clark, Martha, Chloe, and Lana who waited for word on his condition. Even Martha, after being treated for her broken wrist, had been asked to wait in the waiting room while they worked on her husband. It was not until ten minutes earlier that the doctors had come to get her and have a private talk. Clark was invited to join them, but Martha thought it was best for him to wait with the girls.  
  
Lana had gone off to make a few phone calls while Chloe sat alone with him.  
  
"Are you okay?" She asked.  
  
"The world is falling apart, Chloe," he said with a defeated tone. "My father is in there with a broken back and my mother barely escaped certain death herself, while Lex is missing after being taking hostage by the same mad man who is responsible for all of this."  
  
"Things are never as bad as they appear," she assured him. "We may all be a little worse for wear, but we are all still alive."  
  
"For now," he added. "The evil Lex is still out there, and there is no telling what he will do next."  
  
"Lex is with him," she reminded. "He can take care of himself, and he won't let the other one do anything bad while his name can still be associated with the crimes.  
  
"Lex can only do so much," Clark spoke leaning across his own knees. "I know Alex Luthor, and I know what evil he is willing to commit to suite his own needs."  
  
"Wow, I never heard the world famous optimist Clark Kent sound so glum," she commented. "I mean things seem so out of hand right now, but we will win in the end, Clark. We always do."  
  
"We never had to fight against evil versions of our selves before."  
  
"That's what is so hard to believe here. Who are these people, Clark?" She asked. "I mean if they are suppose to be you and Lex from another dimension, then why are they so different?"  
  
"These guys are my living nightmares," he replied simply. "The Clark one is some type of clone. I don't understand the Lex guy myself, but he's nothing like the Lex we know."  
  
"Or maybe he is the Lex we should know," Chloe pointed out. "Lex went through a traumatic experience when he was a kid. I'm assuming that's how he lost his hair. Maybe this other Lex is what he was suppose to become, and deep down, he is the side of Lex that he is keeping under cover."  
  
"Lex is not evil, Chloe," Clark sat up with a firm defiance.  
  
"Or maybe you just refuse to see what is in front of you." Chloe noted turning her gaze away from him.  
  
He gave her a strong look as if to tell her to let it go and get off the subject.  
  
A few moments of uncomfortable silence passed before they were interrupted. Martha with her arm in a sling approached them.  
  
"Ma," Clark jumped up. He could tell by the pain in her face that the news was not good. He pulled her close and hugged her.  
  
"It is that bad?" Chloe was afraid, but asked anyway.  
  
Martha pulled herself away and forced a smile. "He'll live," she said.  
  
"But?" Clark coaxed.  
  
"His spine is badly damaged," Martha explained. "They nearly lost him a few times while they tried to fix what they could. They don't understand how he survived so long to start with. I told them your father was a stubborn man and he was not planning on going anywhere."  
  
"So, what does the broken back mean?" Chloe asked with a careful tone.  
  
"Jonathan," The words broke on her lips. "He will never walk again."  
  
Clark's strength seemed to leave him and he slid back down into his seat.  
  
"All of his movements may be very limited," Martha continued. "It too early to know for sure, but there is no telling how many nerves have been damaged by the impact."  
  
Chloe wrapped her arms around Martha. "I am so sorry, Mrs. Kent."  
  
"I know, Chloe," Martha seemed to find an inner strength that held her up at that moment while Clark sat on the verge of tears.  
  
"Is there anything I can do?" She asked.  
  
"Please pray, Chloe," Martha suggested. "Jonathan will need as much prayer as we can muster up. None of us will be able to do this alone."  
  
"A fat lot of help prayer will do," Clark muttered.  
  
"Clark," Martha sternly called his name.  
  
"Come on, Mom," He looked up at her with disgust in his face. "We Kents have been praying all our lives, and look where it has gotten us. God doesn't listen to dirt farmers. Heck, I was told the last time I met Alex, that it was in answer to a prayer. To see a world where I was never born, where I can learn the value of my own worth to this world, and now the maniac I met there has followed me back here to kill me and everyone I love. What type of prayer is answered like that?"  
  
"Don't you sass God, Clark," Martha warned.  
  
"Give it up, Mom," He stood up. "There is no God, and this proves it. It's a stupid concept thought up to keep born ignorant people in line"  
  
"How dare you?" She said sternly. "I know you are upset right now, but I am still your mother and you will show me a little respect."  
  
"I'm sorry, Ma, but I don't see a whole lot a proof of some benevolent being watching over us right now." Clark tried to calm his voice. He then turned and walked away.  
  
Chloe placed her hand on Martha's shoulder. "I could talk to him."  
  
"No Chloe," Martha patted her hand. "I need to talk to my son."  
  
Clark had made his way down the hall outside of the ICU waiting room and sat on a large windowsill. He watched out into the dark night sky and tried to study the stars like he had from his fortress of solitude back at the farm. Martha approached slowly and saw that he was wiping away tears.  
  
"I'm sorry," he said when she was within earshot.  
  
"You're upset, it's understandable," she said sitting on the same ledge across from him. "I guess at a time like this we are all allowed one tirade."  
  
"I'll try and remember that," he attempted to smile.  
  
"I need you to be strong, Clark," she brushed his hair with her hand. "You're father is going to need us by his side, and he will try and push us away to protect us from his pain."  
  
"I know," Clark agreed.  
  
"He will also need our prayers," Martha added.  
  
"Please don't ask me to do that, Ma," the inner anguish that showed on his face broke his mother's heart.  
  
"Clark, this is not some curse from God," she tried to make him understand. "Bad things happen to good people. You know that." She took a breath and thought of her words before she went on. "Your father and I think of life as one big test. God does not give us more than we can bear to handle, and then if we put our trust in him, he helps us through the trials. He will hold us up if we ask him. What ever has happen here has happen for a reason. We may never know why it happened, in this lifetime, but I believe we will when we are in glory with him and we will be blessed for enduring the trials while we were still giving the chance. I would rather go through a hundred trials while giving God my praise and worship like always, than to try and make it through any of life's hardships without him. Some times we need the trials to remember that we need the Lord."  
  
"How can you even be sure there is a God in a time like this?" Clark fought the distaste in his mouth. His voice was horse from holding back the tears.  
  
"Because he told me he was real," Martha said. "You know about the Holy Ghost from church and Sunday school. You know how he instills a part of himself in us when we believe and come to him in prayer. He accepts us and fills us with a part of himself by his holy spirit. There is also a still quiet voice inside of me tells me he is real every time I speak to him. I feel his presence in my everyday life. I also know that he answered my greatest desire when he gave you to us."  
  
"Oh, gee Mom," Clark brushed the notion off. "It was just some freak thing that happened. You and Dad were there at the right time when my rocket ship crashed into the cornfield. I mean I am happy we found each other and all, but it was just some fluke."  
  
"It was the answer to a prayer, Clark," she touched his face tenderly. "My prayer."  
  
"I know this story, Mom," Clark tried to be polite in his anguish. "You prayed for years like Sarah and Hannah and all those other women in the Bible did, and you always knew that God would give you a child, and I was the answer to that prayer. Only Isaac and Samuel didn't crash land in a rocket like I did. It was a fluke."  
  
"It was a prayer being answered," She insisted. "Do you know what happen the night before you were given to us?"  
  
She had finally gotten his attention and he listen with interest. "What?"  
  
"I had a dream of my great uncle Jerry," She told him. "He died a few years earlier but he and his brother Joe had been preachers and they were the ones who baptized me when I was twelve years old in Uncle Jerry's small Lighthouse church. In the dream he told me that I would be receiving my hearts desire of a child very soon. The details were left out of course, but you came into our lives the very next day."  
  
Martha smiled as she thought back. "I woke up and was so excited that I was unable to fall back asleep. So I took my Bible and went up into the hay loaf in the barn and began reading at random. I was reading the story of the Christ's birth in the book of Luke when I saw it. Just like in the Holy Scriptures, a bright light appeared in the sky over the horizon. To the best of my knowledge, no one else saw it that night but me, but it was there as sure as we am sitting here now. Your father told me that it must have been a shooting star, but I believe it was the early morning sun not yet up, reflecting off the meteor shower that was coming towards Earth as a sign to me that my child was being delivered to me just as the star of Bethlehem showed to announce the birth of Jesus in the very Bible I was reading."  
  
"You never told me that before," Clark said.  
  
"I know, because it was God's personal message to me," she smiled at her son. "And now let it be a message to you as well. There is a God who cares, Clark. He is watching over us now like he always has. We will get past this."  
  
He sat for a moment taking in all she had just told him. He finally looked up again and said. "I'll have to take your word for it, Mom," he hugged her. "I want to believe."  
  
"And you do, son," she hugged back. "You just need to let yourself remember it. Like the savior of the world was born with the sign of the star, you were brought into our lives with a similar sign to prove that you were a blessing from Heaven. You saved us from the missed opportunity to love a child. Who knows Clark, with all of your powers, you may save the world someday yourself. A superhero like in those comic books you and Pete use to read"  
  
"I hope your wrong, Mom," He gave her, his best smile. "I don't think I'm cut out for a cape and tights like those guys in the comics."  
  
  
  
  
  
Alex and Lex had made their way down to level three at the Luthor Corps plant and watched the blue orb of energy pulsating in the dark room. Lex had phoned ahead and instructed the staff to stop the testing and leave for the night. The two men found themselves alone in the vast warehouse.  
  
"Where is he?" Alex asked with a great anger.  
  
"How would I know, I'm the hostage, remember?" Lex commented sitting on one of the office chairs left behind. His hands were tied at his back, and he was tired and drawn.  
  
"It doesn't have to be this way," Alex leaned over him. "We could work together. There is no telling what two Lex Luthors could accomplish. We have two worlds ready for the taking."  
  
"Weren't you the one planning on framing me for all your crimes?" Lex questioned.  
  
"Yes, as enemies we are formidable, but as allies, we are unstoppable," Alex pointed out.  
  
"For crying out loud, Alex. This is the real world, will you stop talking like a super villain in a old movie serial," Lex said with disgust. "People don't plan to take over the world in real life."  
  
"Small minds, Lex," Alex looked at his watch. "To plan big, you have to think big." He said making another round around the chair.  
  
After a few more minutes, Lex searched the room from his vantage point. "He's not coming, Alex."  
  
Alex stopped pacing and stared down at him.  
  
"Your Clark clone is not coming back," Lex told him. "The real Clark has found a way to stop him and take him prisoner. If anyone shows up, it will be Clark to take you to jail for almost killing his father."  
  
"Ha, and who will believe that there are two Lex Luthors," he laughed.  
  
"This is Smallville you 'me' knock off in bad shoes." Lex spat with even more disgust. "Once they hear about you, they are likely to start a man hunt looking for a third Lex."  
  
"Ah yes. Smallville is prone to the unusual," Alex agreed. "You of course refer to them as 'freaks of the week' in your records you keep on your personal computer files."  
  
"You got to my secret files?" Lex asked.  
  
"On the computer in your home office?" Alex nodded with an evil grin. "Your security systems and passwords are of no secret to us. Some would say we share the same mind." He made one more walk around him and spoke again. "I was impressed with your extensive files on your good friend Clark. For someone who holds such affections with you, you do keep a very detailed database on his activities and your suspicions."  
  
Lex attempted to give no reaction to his prodding.  
  
"It was so sad to see how close you were coming to his secrets while still being so blind to what was right before your eyes," Alex told him. "I guess I should thank you. It was those same files that lead me to the Kent farm and helped me to see that they could be used as his Achilles' heel."  
  
"You're sick, Alex."  
  
"Yes, but so are you," He smirked. "Are you really so taken aback by the fact that I have done these things, or instead, are you angry with yourself for not coming up with these plots first?"  
  
Alex took Lex's face in his free hand that was not holding the stun gun. "It's not too late, Lex. Join with me, and we can rule the worlds."  
  
Lex looked up at his double with suspicious eyes.  
  
"I can accept that my clone may not come back, but I know Clark will follow me looking for you," Alex said. "That will make setting my trap all the more easy. So either way, we have to go through the portal together. The choice is up to you if you go through it dead or alive," he leaned in closer and lowered his voice to a whisper. "I can use you alive more than I can dead, Lex"  
  
Lex sat silent pondering the situation for a long time.  
  
  
  
Clark had stayed on the windowsill looking out at the night sky trying not to think of all the reasons why Lex had not answered his cell phone. Besides the danger that his friend was in, Clark knew how upset he must have been with him for keeping his powers a secret for all this time. Lex had all but asked Clark out right if he had super abilities, but he had always avoided the question or thrown him off the topic of conversation. If need be, a white lie would have to be used. Lex always took him at his word and trusted that Clark was telling him everything he wanted to know. Now he knew the truth, and the question of their friendship was up in the air. Everyone around Lex had always lied and kept secrets from him with his own father being the worst, but Clark was different. He was the barer of truth in Lex's world, and now that too was a liar.  
  
"Clark?" Lana's soft voice woke him up from his deep thoughts.  
  
"Lana?" He gave her his best smile.  
  
"I thought you might like a cup of hot chocolate," she handed him the Styrofoam container. "Is your Mom still in with your Dad?"  
  
"Yeah," he took the cup. "They said he was asking for her when he woke up. She's not sure if she should tell him how bad it is, yet."  
  
"I'm sure your father will be able to deal with what ever happens," she assured him. "He's a very strong man in body and mind."  
  
"I know," he fiddled with the cup. "I just hate seeing him like this." He took an inhaled sniff of the cocoa and a hurt look came to his face.  
  
"Oh, I'm so sorry," Lana, thought all at once. "I completely forgot about your Dad's famous hot chocolate. That was so thoughtless of me. Should I get you a soda instead?"  
  
"No, Lana," he gave her a sweet smile. "It's alright. There is going to be a lot that my father won't be able to do anymore. Avoid the memories is not going to change that."  
  
"I'm still sorry."  
  
"I know," he replied.  
  
"What about you?" She asked sitting at his bent knees. "How are you doing? Present plunder excluded."  
  
"Can you ask me again when I wake up from this nightmare?"  
  
"Well, I have to admit that this whole mess is weird, even by Smallville standards," Lana agreed. "To think that there is a whole other universe just like this one gives me the willies."  
  
"I'm sorry you got involved in any of this, Lana?"  
  
"We all seem to be joined together in these adventures, Clark," she told him. "The real sad thing is all the people who get hurt from them."  
  
He just gave her a polite smile and returned to playing with his cocoa.  
  
"Clark," she sounded almost hesitant to ask. "When you first met this other Lex on that strange world, did you happen to meet up with me?"  
  
"You mean that world's version of you?" He looked up from the corner of his eye.  
  
"Yeah," she was embarrassed to even ask. "I mean you said that there were no meteor showers there. I was just wondering if my folks would still be around if the showers never came."  
  
Clark thought for a moment. How could he tell her that she was even more miserable with her parents alive, than she was with them dead? "You were perfect as always," He said with a smile.  
  
"Oh, Clark," she blushed.  
  
They heard footsteps approach them.  
  
"Clark," Chloe said. "Your Mom asked me to come get you. Your father is asking for you."  
  
"Oh, sure," he said with a surprised look. "I…" He sat with a hesitant demeanor.  
  
"Go ahead," Lana touched his knee. "You're father needs you right now."  
  
"But what if he thinks it's all my fault?" His eyes fell to the floor, again.  
  
"Clark," Lana said sternly. "Your father will think no such thing. He loves you. He knows that guy wasn't you who tossed him across the room, and he knows you did not lead them here either."  
  
"She's right, Clark," Chloe agreed swallowing her own anguish. She wished she were the one sitting next to Clark comforting him. "Your father doesn't think like that. Especially where you are concern."  
  
"I guess your both right," he went along. "I'm just being paranoid."  
  
He stood up and began walking away. "You'll be here when I get back?" He turned to Lana.  
  
"Of course," she said touching Chloe's arm. "We both will."  
  
"Thanks," he walked away.  
  
"Are you okay?" Lana asked Chloe.  
  
"Sure," Chloe lied. "Just peachy."  
  
  
  
Pete Ross and Whitney Fordman road the elevator down to level three with a weakened Clark's clone wearing Lana's necklace. They watched as the lights on the board above them passed by.  
  
"Are you sure this is such a good idea?" A nervous Pete asked.  
  
"I told you, Pete. Clark is tied up with his folks right now, and this guys is our best chance of finding the two Lexes," Whitney told him. "We don't need lanky Clark to fight all our battles for us. Some one has to put an end to this and save Lex and who knows who else that might get hurt later."  
  
"But are you sure we are the right guys for the job?" Pete asked again.  
  
"We are all we have right now with Lex missing and Clark tied up with his folks," he insisted. "Like Lex said, no one would believe this story if we told them, and it would only end up with the real Clark and Lex getting arrested."  
  
"I guess you're right," Pete agreed.  
  
The doors opened to the glow of the blue light from the orb. They stepped out and looked down at the empty room.  
  
"Where are all the scientists?" Pete questioned.  
  
"It only makes sense that they didn't want them to see two Lexes," Whitney said. "They must have sent them all home."  
  
"We hope."  
  
Each shot the other a worried look.  
  
They proceeded and climbed down the ladder to the floor below. Whitney let the clone rest against him as they lowered themselves. "I'm beginning to believe this guy is made of steel," he said with a grunt. "He weighs a ton."  
  
"Don't drop him," Pete warned. "There is no telling how fast he will break through those ropes if the necklace comes loose."  
  
Hey, I'm the one who had to dunk my hand in ice water for over an hour back at the barn after hitting this guy's jaw." Whitney reminded. "I don't want to risk having to do that again."  
  
Once on the floor, they began to walk around the blue sphere.  
  
"So where are Lex and Alex?" Pete asked.  
  
"Well?" Whitney shook the clone.  
  
"Mister Luthor told me to meet him here if we should get separated," he said in a weak voice.  
  
"Then where is he?" Pete asked again.  
  
"I don't know," the clone moaned.  
  
"What's that?" Whitney pointed at the floor near an office chair.  
  
Pete walked over and picked up a long piece of rope.  
  
"Looks like someone was tied up down here," Pete told him.  
  
"But who?" Whitney questioned.  
  
"Oh, no," Pete said leaning over again. "I think I know who."  
  
He picked up a cell phone. "I've seen this phone being held by Lex a thousand times. The voice mail indicates he has several messages waiting for him. Most are from a pay phone."  
  
"Clark must have tried to call from the hospital," Whitney determined. "So they were here."  
  
"Yeah, but where did they go?" Pete asked out loud.  
  
They both turned to the orb at the same instant.  
  
"You don't think?" Pete questioned him.  
  
"Where else?" Whitney replied.  
  
"I don't know…" Pete started and stopped quickly. He walked over to the orb and looked down. "Oh, my God."  
  
"What is it?" Whitney followed dragging the clone.  
  
Pete leaned over and picked up a small piece of material. "It's a piece of Lex's shirt." He said.  
  
"Are you sure?" Whitney inquired  
  
Pete held it up to him. "Who else do we know in Smallville with a passion for purple silk blend shirts?"  
  
Whitney took the patch and looked it over. "It's a trail for Clark to follow."  
  
"Good guest, Whitney." Pete remarked. "The next clue to solve is, are we stupid enough to walk into a trap set for Clark?"  
  
Whiney thought for a minute. "Yes," He answered. "Only these guys are waiting for one Clark to show up. Instead what they will get are two football jocks and a Clark wannabe."  
  
"Wait," Pete became alarmed. "Are you saying that we are going into that thing?"  
  
"It's the only way, Pete," Whitney's eyes began to sparkle. "Besides, we are on the football team. We can handle ourselves."  
  
"No, Whitney," Pete protested. "You are on the team. I keep the bench warm, remember?"  
  
"Don't worry, Pete," Whiney smiled. "We can handle anything Clark can. He's been there and back already. We can do this."  
  
"Besides," He held up the cloned Clark. "We have a bargaining chip right here."  
  
Pete smacked his palm against his own head. "I don't believe we are doing this."  
  
"Don't worry, Pete," Whitney gave him his best grin. "I have never dropped a ball yet."  
  
Pete held up Lex's cell phone. "Can I make my last phone call, first?"  
  
  
  
The small cubical of a room was dark as Clark approached it. The entire area was set up with a number of these cubicles encircling the nurses' station area. Each room was filled with the most critical and sick patients in the hospital. When the city is as big as Metropolis, Clark knew these rooms were reserved only for the worst of the worst. The fear in his belly became a jiggle, as he got closer. Each hum, beep and click of the numerous machines around him only help to hasten his own heart rate. In all his fifteen years, he had never been in such a serious place. Each step brought him dread as he remembered who was waiting at the end of his journey and why he was there.  
  
"Clark," Martha called softly when she saw him at the entrance of his father's room.  
  
Clark stood as if his feet were welded to the floor beneath him. His entire body was stiff, and the butterflies in his stomach were now raging hornets in a bee hive.  
  
Martha made her way over to him and took his hand. "Your father has been asking for you." She continued to use the soft tone. "He will be happy when he sees you."  
  
"Why are his eyes closed?" Clark asked swallowing the lump in his throat.  
  
"He's asleep," she explained. "He's on a lot of medications, and he keeps dozing off."  
  
"Should we bother him?"  
  
Of course," she said. "He will wake up when he knows you are here," she assured. "He may doze off again rather quickly, but it will be comforting for him to know you are here and doing well."  
  
She tugged on his hand but he did not move forward.  
  
"Ma," his eyes began to tear up. "I don't think I can do this."  
  
Martha pulled his head down to her shoulder. "Don't think," she whispered into his ear. "You are a lot stronger than you think, Honey. Just be there for your father."  
  
A twinge of anger at himself came over Clark as he thought of how selfish he was being. Not just to his father, but also to Martha who was using every reserve within her to stay strong for the man she loved, and he hated that he would take some of that energy to comfort him self. She was giving all, and he was asking for more.  
  
"I'm sorry, Mom," he pulled himself upright again. "I'll come."  
  
She again pulled his hand, and he followed her to his father's bedside. Once there, Martha stepped aside and ushered Clark to get close to the rail. "Just say his name softly a few times," she told him.  
  
Clark looked down as his father who looked so weak and frail. His skin was grayish and for the first time, Clark thought of how much older he looked. The tubes, wires and straps seemed to be coming out of everywhere. The entire body was nearly covered by a cast and a neck brace was wrapped under his chin. Wires seemed almost to be holding him in mid air. The worst however was the metal ring that encircled his head and had four pin or screw like rods going into his scull. It didn't take Clark's x- ray vision to see that they were imbedded under the flesh right down to the very bone. A chill hit him, just at the thought.  
  
Clark felt Martha's gentle hand on his back coaxing him to go ahead and speak to his father.  
  
"Pa," Clark often found his childhood name for his father comforting in hard times. "Pa, it's me Clark." His voice was low and shaky.  
  
It took a few seconds, but Clark saw Jonathan's eyes flutter open. They were not their usual vibrant sparkling selves. He seemed to be trying to focus while search around in his limited range of sight. With all the equipment attached to him, he could not move his head even in the slightest. So Clark leaned forward hoping to make it easier for him to look at his son.  
  
"How are you doing?" He tried to smile for his father. "Looks like you have a real circus act going for yourself here."  
  
"Clark," Jonathan barely spoke the words. He licked his dry lips.  
  
The simple sound of his name on his father's frail voice almost broke Clark down into tears again, but he resolved to remain strong for his parents now.  
  
"Ma said you were looking for me." His voice was barely above a whisper.  
  
"I love you, son," His words were few, but Jonathan knew he needed to make them count.  
  
"I love you too, Pa," A tear rolled off Clark's cheek, much to his own dismay. "That goes with out saying."  
  
Jonathan used all his will to make the fingers of his right hand wiggle. Clark knew what it meant and took a hold of it with a gentle grasp.  
  
"Not your fault," Jonathan forced out.  
  
"I lead them here without realizing," Clark explained. "I didn't even know these guys were real."  
  
"I know," Jonathan agreed.  
  
"Now they have Lex, and I'm not sure what to do next."  
  
Martha's face creased behind him. She knew Clark relied on his father for advice, but she wasn't sure that he should be worrying him at this time."  
  
"Trust," Jonathan said.  
  
"I don't know if I can trust my instincts on this one, Pa," Clark returned.  
  
"Not Clark," he added.  
  
Clark became confused. "I don't understand," he told his father. "Who else can I trust to help find Lex?"  
  
"Clark second," Jonathan's words were becoming more forced with each syllable. "God first."  
  
Clark's body tensed up, and Jonathan knew by his touch.  
  
"I'm…" Clark was hesitant to reply. "I don't know if I can do that, Dad."  
  
"Clark," Martha's voice said softly behind him.  
  
He lowered his head to rest on the rail of the bed. He knew his words were more hurtful than helpful, but he had never lied to his parents, and he knew now was not he time to start. "I'm sorry Ma and Pa, but I am trying to sort this out really, but I don't have the faith that you do right now."  
  
"Your being here is no mistake," Jonathan felt strained just pulling an entire sentence together. "You have a purpose. Right now it is to save Lex from himself."  
  
"Dad," Clark too was fighting for words. "I don't know how."  
  
Jonathan took a deep breath and let out the only words he could bring his frail body to say. "God does, Trust the Lord."  
  
"I'll try," Clark raised his head. "I promise."  
  
Jonathan's eyes closed and he seemed to drift off for a few seconds. Clark watched as his father slept.  
  
"I do believe that God will get us through this," Clark said still watching. "I believe it in my heart, but my head keeps telling me otherwise."  
  
"Then listen to your heart, son," Martha added, placing her hand on his back.  
  
"You and Pa are my heart," He told her. "I will listen to my heart, because you never lied to me before."  
  
He carefully leaned over and kissed his father's forehead.  
  
  
  
It was a while longer before Clark and Martha returned to the waiting room where Lana and Chloe sat waiting. They had said a few prayers before leaving Jonathan's side, and Clark seemed to have a renewed trust in his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, but even he did not know how long it would last.  
  
Lana wanted to wrap her arms around Clark to give him comfort from the hurt look that hung on his face, but she was well aware of Chloe's feelings for him, and her own confusion of her feelings for Whitney. The awful memory of the clone Clark chasing her also weighed heavy in her memories, so she instead gave him a sympathetic "Hey" When he walked in.  
  
"He's resting again," Martha told them. "The doctors say it is the best thing for him right now."  
  
"How are you doing, Mrs. Kent?" Lana asked.  
  
"I'm holding up, Lana," she replied.  
  
"You should go home and get some sleep," Chloe suggested.  
  
"No," Clark jumped in. "I mean, we don't know if it is safe there right now."  
  
"Clark is right," Martha added. "As much as I hate to let them force me out of my own home, it is not safe to return there until the second Lex and Clark are dealt with. I'll just sit in with Jonathan and try and rest. I don't want to leave in case he needs me."  
  
"I can't stay, Ma," Clark told them. "I have to find Lex."  
  
"Are you sure you are up to it?" She asked.  
  
He shrugged his shoulder. "I can't put it off any longer. Now that Dad is out of danger, I need to help Lex. I just need to figure out where to start looking"  
  
"I may be able to solve that problem," Chloe said.  
  
Clark and Martha turned to her with a shocked look.  
  
"I'm sorry, Clark," she added. "I didn't want to spring this on you the minute you walked out here, but we got a phone call from Pete and Whitney."  
  
"And?" Clark coaxed.  
  
"They had the clone lead them to Lex and Alex, and he brought them to Level Three," Chloe Explained.  
  
"The orb?" He was alarmed.  
  
"They found evidence that Alex took Lex into the dimensional doorway," she told him. "They have gone into the other reality."  
  
"Oh, my God," Clark gasped.  
  
"They left clues behind for you to follow," Lana added. "It's a trap, Clark."  
  
"I still have to go after Lex," Clark insisted.  
  
"We figured you would," Chloe then added. "But there is more."  
  
He turned his attention back towards her.  
  
"Whitney and Pete decided they wanted to help," she explained. "They took the clone and went into the portal after Lex and Alex."  
  
The blood drained from Clark's face.  
  
"Clark, maybe you should sit down," Martha suggested.  
  
"I'm okay, Mom," he assured her. "This is all just surprising. What are Pete and Whitney thinking?"  
  
"I think they are trying to help," Lana said with what she hoped was a comforting voice. "Think what you want Clark, but we are all friends, and we look out for each other."  
  
"Lana's right, Clark," Chloe chimed in. "I think the guys are trying to help take some of the load off of you by going after Lex."  
  
"That's crazy," Clark snorted with hasten words. "Alex is a killer. There is no telling what he will do to them. The clone is another problem waiting to explode. The minute he gets free of the meteor necklace's effect, there is no telling how badly he could hurt them."  
  
"If it helps," Lana spoke up. "I don't think the clone is all that evil. He seems to be following Alex's orders. I think if they can get him on their side, he could be a real asset."  
  
Clark began pacing the floor. "This has become so dangerous," he said more to himself than to them. "This whole mess just gets bigger by the minute."  
  
"You are going in there, aren't you Clark?" Martha asked with a worried voice.  
  
He turned and looked into his mother's hurt eyes. "I have to, Mom," he told her. "There is no telling what trouble they have gotten themselves into. They have no idea what to expect on the other side. Things are very different in that Smallville."  
  
She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "Then go and do what you have to, son. Your father and I will be waiting here when you return."  
  
"I love you, Ma," he hugged her close.  
  
"I love you, too, Clark," she whispered into his ear. "You come back to us soon."  
  
"I will," he smiled pulling away.  
  
Martha held back the tears as she thought of the possibility of losing another part of her heart that night, but she held herself together and smiled at her son. "I should get back to your father," she said dismissingly.  
  
Clark watched carefully as she disappeared behind the doors to the ICU unit.  
  
He gathered up his resolve and turned back to the girls.  
  
"How can we help?" Chloe asked trying to break the unease silence between them.  
  
"I need the two of you to stay here with my folks," he said. "My Mom may act strong, but I know she's falling apart inside. I need the two of you to be her support as much as she will allow."  
  
"Sure," Lana agreed. "We won't leave your Mom and Dad."  
  
"Thank you," Clark gave a sweet smile.  
  
"Hey," Chloe spoke up. "This is bigger than any high school news paper story, isn't it?"  
  
Clark didn't know what to say. He rubbed his palm against her cheek.  
  
The three of them pulled into a tight hug and none wanted to let go.  
  
"I have to go," Clark finally said with a shaky voice. He pulled away and looked down at them. "I'll bring the guys home, I promise."  
  
"Don't forget to come back yourself, hot shot," Chloe joked.  
  
The tension seemed to fill the room as they waited for a reply from Clark.  
  
"Clark?" She spoke with a worried tone.  
  
"I plan on coming back," he said. "But I will do what ever I have to do to stop Alex from hurting anyone else."  
  
Slowly Clark reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "I wrote this while I was up the hall looking out the window," he handing it to Lana."  
  
"Oh, Clark," a tear rolled down her face.  
  
"Please," he stopped her. "I need you to give this to my folks if anything…"  
  
"Don't say that," Chloe almost screamed. Her tears were rolling from her eyes too.  
  
Clark put his hand on her shoulder. "Give this to my folks if I don't come back," he got out before his own voice cracked. "I know what Alex wants with me, and if I have to give up my own life to stop him, then I will do what ever it takes."  
  
"Please take care of my folks, and each other," he then leaned over and kissed each of them on the cheeks.  
  
Clark turned and walked away while the girls watched. Something in Chloe peaked and she called out. "I love you, Clark."  
  
He turned and took a last look at her.  
  
"I love you, buddy," She added the last word to her last statement as if to ease her fear.  
  
Clark looked at the two women in his life, and there was so much more he wanted to say. So many more feelings to sort out, but now was not the time to do it. He wanted to say something, but was not sure which to say it to, and how not to upset either of them. So he decided instead to flash them one of his pearly white smiles that only Clark could.  
  
Then he was gone.  
  
  
  
The run back to Smallville took him several minutes, but Clark was able to make it pass security at the Luthor Corp plant undetected and found himself in the emptied Level Three. It was unclear how Pete and Whitney had made it through the security also, but that was a question for another time.  
  
Clark stood before the flashing blue orb and looked into its deep nothingness. He thought about what had brought him to this point and he pondered the fact that he may never see this side if the portal again. Pictures of the dead man on Lex's study floor crossed his mind. He thought of the look of fear that was in Lana's eyes when she saw him and thought he might be the clone. Then there was the face of the crazed Alex when he yet again tried to kill him. The hurt in Lex's eyes as the realization of all the months of lies about who and what he really was. Pete, Chloe, and even Whitney's honest attempt to help in anyway they could. Then the picture of his mother huddled over his injured father. He had never seen his parents so frail and needy. The pain of their hurt cut into Clark's heart like a knife never could. It was for all these people and perhaps all of humanity as well, that he knew he had to enter the portal and put an end to Alex's evil schemes. He needed to save his friends and get them home, even if he himself could never make that journey again.  
  
A shot of fear struck Clark as he thought about these things, and then he also remembered all the pain that could be waiting for him on the other side. Not just the fight that laid ahead, but the difficulties on everyday life in the alternate Smallville that had left his friends changed forever. For as much pain as there was in his world now, there was nearly an equal amount waiting just ahead. Clark pulled his courage together and squared his shoulders. He was ready. He thought. Then the words of his frail father on his hospital bed only a short time earlier gave Clark reason to pause. He pondered the simple words. "Trust the Lord, son."  
  
Clark was daze and confused at all the things that had happen and what could in the hours to come. He was not even clear on his feelings of matters he thought were carved in stone for his life, but all the years of preparations and training, Clark knew that there was one thing he would have to do before he went into this battle. His mind drifted to an old Bible verse that he had remembered in one of his early Sunday school's class's weekly memory verses. "If the Lord is with us, who can stand against us." He thought for a moment, and then lowered himself to his knees. In his darkest hour, Clark went before the throne of God and prayed. His head was unsure of where these words would end up, but in his heart of hearts, Clark knew that they were being set before the very throne of the all mightily Lord him self, and he would listen to the humble words from a faithful servant. Clark felt the presence of the God in that room, and most importantly, he felt him within his heart. There were no more questions for him. His prayers had been heard, and all of heaven was about to go into battle with the evil forces of two worlds. Come what may, he was going to THE OTHER SIDE.  
  
  
  
TO BE CONTINUED…. 


	4. Chapter 4

1 Something Wicked This Way Comes: Part Two  
  
2 The Other Side  
  
2.1 Chapter Four  
  
(Editor's note: This portion of the story takes place in the alternate reality where our Clark, Lex, Whitney and Pete have traveled. They will interact with Alex, Lana, Chloe, Martha, Jonathan and the clone Clark of the alternate universe.)  
  
It all started with a nightmare. On Christmas Eve, after a hard day, Clark made a silent wish that lead to a dream. He woke up in a world where his rocket ship never landed in Smallville. No one knew who he was, and the history of the tiny town was changed forever. The experience had proven dangerous and heartbreaking. He woke up again, believing that the entire event was over, but he was wrong. It was no dream, but an alternate universe and the Lex Luthor he met on the other side learned of his secrets and vowed to use them for his own purposes. He vowed he would find Clark even after he had disappeared, and Lex has always been a man of his word.  
  
  
  
Yesterday morning Clark's nightmare came visiting his Smallville, and his life would never be the same again.  
  
  
  
************************************************************************  
  
The large blue orb in the center of the warehouse size room was pulsating with electricity. It had stood dormant for the last few hours but seemed to be coming alive again. Shadows began to emerge from the blinding light within. Slowly, the shadows began to come together and they took shape. The shaking and movements of the object within made it hard to distinguish, but then a full shape began to form, and the distinctive shadow of a man moved towards the outer edge of the Sphere. It was a few move seconds before the shape stepped out of the light, and onto solid paved floors and the young Clark Kent entered into another realm. He had been here before thinking this alternate reality was all a dream, but this time he came deliberately. This time he came to the alternate Smallville with a purpose. He was here to save two worlds.  
  
The light was blinding from both outside and within the sphere. The young, tall, dark-haired man struggled to focus his eyes again to the dimness of the room. It was cold and damp compared to the one he had just come from. Level three on his Earth was a sealed off compartment of the Luthor Corps fertilizer plant #3. The air there was stale and flat, but here, it was apparent that this Level Three was very much in use. For what, Clark could only guess. His Lionel Luthor had abandoned it months ago after running secret experiments with the meteor fragments, but here Lionel was a prisoner of his own body in his son's castle a few miles away. Lex Luthor, or Alex as he now preferred to be known was running the show on this side of reality, and this Luthor was far worse than any Clark had ever met before.  
  
Clark could hear the faint growling in the close proximity. His sight was coming back quickly, and he could make out the shape of three large guard dogs just a few feet before him. His reaction was to take a step back in fear, but Clark knew these animals could not hurt him. He slowly stepped forward again and walked towards them. The dogs growled ever the more loudly.  
  
"I don't have time to play right now," Clark told them. "So let's just part as friends and no one has to get hurt."  
  
One of the canines came closer to him. Slowly Clark held out his hand for the dog to sniff. It took a few seconds, but after a few snorts from his snout, the dog backed away as if he knew Clark and playfully lowered his head to the ground.  
  
"He must think I'm the clone," Clark thought out loud.  
  
He searched the room as he bent down to pet the dogs. There were all types of testing equipment and devices of various shapes and sizes that he could not even begin to fathom what they were used for. Other than the tools, equipment, and computers, the entire room was emptied of people.  
  
"Well at least Alex is not a slave driver having his people working down here twenty-four seven," He thought to himself. "I had better get a move on and find the others. I'm sure Alex knows I'm coming. I just wish I knew where he took Lex and what happened to Pete and Whitney when they came through with the clone earlier."  
  
Clark made his way over to the steps leading to the platform above him. In this plant, the catwalk had not fallen down with him and Lex still on it like it had in his world a few months earlier. He looked down at the first dog, which seemed to have a particular fondest for him and had followed him.  
  
"So where did they all go, Boy?" He asked in a pleasant voice.  
  
The dog could only wag the stub that was left of his tail.  
  
"That's okay," he rubbed the dog playfully. "I think I already know."  
  
The dog licked his face.  
  
"Yeah, boy," Clark laughed. "It's nice to see that not everything Luthor Corps on this side is corrupted."  
  
He started his walk up the steps and looked back at the whining dog. "I'll be back, boy," he said. "I just need to find my friends, and I'll be back."  
  
  
  
  
  
It was early dawn over a weary Smallville when Clark's friends, Pete Ross and Whitney Fordman, found themselves walking down the empty city streets with the sickly Clark clone in tow. They had hoped to make it to Alex's home by dawn since they were sure that is where he took Lex. The sun was coming up, and they had not even made it through the small town to the other side where the Scottish mansion stood about a mile out of town.  
  
"Will you come on?" Pete looked back at Whitney who was struggling with the weight of the clone on him. "We need to get to the mansion before Alex learns we are here."  
  
"Dude," Whitney gave him the evil eye. "I'm doing the best that I can. This clone weighs a ton, and he's not helping me with the walking thing."  
  
"That's because he's sick," Pete walked back to them. "I know the meteor rock necklace is keeping him from being able to fight us, but I think it's making him sick."  
  
"Tell me about it, Ross," Whitney confirmed while short of breath. "The guy almost spewed on me twice."  
  
"Look at his skin," Pete gave the clone a worried look over. "It's all shriveled up and turning colors. Are you sure we aren't killing him with this thing?"  
  
"What choice do we have?" Whitney asked. "If we release him, there is no telling what he can do to us. I'm also sure he'll run to his boss Alex and tell him we are here. Then the element of surprise is gone."  
  
"I know, but I just hate seeing him suffer like that," Pete remarked.  
  
"Dude, he's a clone," Whitney reminded him. "He isn't human, and he's not your friend Clark. Besides, he was able to help us get past the dogs on Level three. We may need him again."  
  
"Okay," Pete went along. "It's been a really long day, and we are already into the next one. What do you say we find a place to sit down and maybe have some breakfast before we continue? The rest may help all of us, including the clone."  
  
"I am kinda hungry," Whitney stated. "Okay, but we need to get a move on right after. Seeing Smallville in such a diminished state is giving me the willies."  
  
Pete spun around and then saw a diner across the street and down the block. It was run down and dirty like the rest of the town, but it looked like it was already open. The fact that it was also one of the few building not boarded up seemed to be appealing.  
  
"Down there," Pete pointed. "Looks like where the Beanery would be."  
  
Whitney looked over. "It's one of those old fashioned diners like outside of Metropolis."  
  
"I think it's our only chance at food around here," Pete said.  
  
"Do you think we will stick out?" Whitney questioned.  
  
"How could we possibly be out of place in Smallville?" Pete smiled. "We are just Pete Ross and Whitney Fordman having a little breakfast with our new out of town friend, Clark."  
  
"You think they'll know us here?"  
  
"Our families have been in Smallville long before the meteor showers that changed everything," Pete reminded him. "So I'm sure we have a connection to this town."  
  
"What if our other selves walk in?"  
  
"I take the bus to school and a football jock like you would never be caught dead at a diner before school," Pete told him.  
  
"I guess you're right," Whitney agreed. "Besides, I'd do just about anything to be able to put this guy down for a few minutes."  
  
"Great," Pete smiled and began walking. "So we need a cover story to why our friend is so sick."  
  
"We can tell them he has malaria," the blond man said.  
  
Pete stopped and gave him a puzzled look. "Are Health, History and Science not required classes for you to pass in order to stay on the team?"  
  
Whitney raised his hand over his head with his index finger pointing down at himself. "Quarter Back." He said with a dumb grin.  
  
"Sorry, my bad." Pete rolled his eyes.  
  
  
  
Just down the block in the opposite direction, a uniformed man sitting in a sedan marked Sheriff's Office, took notice of the three young men.  
  
  
  
In the diner, it was still early and very few customers were in. Most that did stop by, only bought their coffees and whatever non-healthy treats to go with it, and headed off to work. Lana Lang Fordman stood behind the counter pouring a cup of coffee for her latest customer, Martha Kent.  
  
"Here you go, Mrs. Kent," the very pregnant Lana said turning to face her.  
  
"Thank you, Lana," Martha smiled back. She handed her two dollars and said. "Keep the change."  
  
"Thanks Mrs. Kent," Lana smiled.  
  
"So," Martha gave her a little grin. "How are all the preparations going for the babies arrival?"  
  
The two women often stole a few minutes out of each day to converse. For Lana, it was the closest she could come to having a friend right now. Her life was either work, or rest in her empty apartment she rented for a fairly cheap price from her boss over the diner.  
  
"Well," Lana glowed. "I went to see Doctor Morgan yesterday, and she said that everything seemed to be coming along well. She says I should be ready any day now."  
  
"That's so exciting," Martha leaned in to enjoy the moment. "Soon you will be bringing a new life into this world."  
  
"I know," Lana bit her lower lip. "I am so nervous about the whole thing."  
  
"Don't be," Martha tried to comfort her. "Childbirth is a lovely and natural thing. Besides, I promised I would be there with you the entire time, and I meant it."  
  
"I want to thank you so much for all you have already done, Mrs. Kent," Lana touched her hand. "I don't know what I would do without you. My Mom is still living in the city with Nell, and my father hardly knows I'm alive these days. His family is at the bottom of a bottle right now."  
  
"Try not to think about things like that," Martha gave her a worried look. "It won't ease your mind, and worry will not help the baby either. Trust me, I am your midwife after all."  
  
"Thanks again," Lana tried to smile again. "For everything."  
  
"No, thank you Lana," Martha said back. "You letting me help you through this whole birth experience is the closest I will ever come to being a Grandmother. The joy is all mine."  
  
The two women hugged.  
  
"Hey guys," they were created by unusually smiling Chloe Sullivan.  
  
"Chloe," Martha gave her a big smile. "I haven't seen you around in days."  
  
"I know," she grinned back. "I have been working on my big scoop over at the Torch. It's amazing how finding your niche in this world can put a whole new prospective on life."  
  
"That's great, Chloe," Lana joined in. "The usual?"  
  
"Yes, thank you," she cooed.  
  
"So this niche that you are in must be very special," Martha remarked. "It's seems since the whole upset at Christmas, when the three of us started to get to know each other a little better, I hardly remember ever seeing you smile."  
  
"The upset?" Chloe gave her famous stare. "You mean when we were all paid a Christmas visit by that mysterious stranger who claimed to know all of us, and went by the name of Clark Kent?"  
  
"Yes," Martha laughed. "I guess it was a little upsetting for all of us. But I don't think we would have gotten to know each other as well as we do if he hadn't of come into our lives for even a brief moment."  
  
"I wonder what ever happened to him," Lana remarked returning with Chloe's coffee and muffin.  
  
"Who knows and who cares?" Chloe said. "I am in a good mood, and no one can take that away from me."  
  
"You never did tell me why you are so happy," Martha reminded. "What has you in such a giddy mood?"  
  
"Life, Mrs. Kent," Chloe laughed "Life and all it's simple pleasures. It struck me this morning. I have been so tied up with my latest story at the newspaper, that I haven't had time to think about anything else. Then this morning when I woke up, I realized that it was the third morning in a row when I didn't wake up wanting to cry over the lost of my friend Pete Ross."  
  
"Oh, Chloe," Martha gave her a sweet smile.  
  
"I know how you feel, Chloe," Lana spoke with hurt feeling in her eyes. "I try not to think about Whitney up in jail everyday. Pete is dead because Whitney tied him to that scarecrow pole and forgot about him, and now both of our lives are changed forever. My baby may never get to know his father."  
  
"Lana," Martha now tried to comfort her too. "Whitney will be in the babies life when he gets out of jail."  
  
"Sixteen years, Mrs. Kent," Lana cried.  
  
Martha pulled the two girls close and gave them a big hug. "What ever happens, girls, remember that we are in this together and Jonathan and I will always be there for you."  
  
"It's sad to say," Chloe added, as they pulled apart. "Pete, Whitney and Clark are three guys who won't be a part of our lives for a very long time to come."  
  
The small bell over the door rang and three new customers entered the diner. They sat in a corner booth, and then one called out. "Could we see a menu, please?"  
  
"Sure," Lana smiled instinctively and picked up some menus. The three women turned around to see the new patrons, and all were shocked.  
  
"Oh, my God," Lana gasped dropping the menus and falling back faint into Martha and Chloe's arms.  
  
"This can't be real," Chloe sighed, looking up at Whitney Fordman and a very alive Pete Ross on either side of the booth with a sickly Clark Kent seated in the middle. "This can not be real," she repeated.  
  
  
  
Clark had made the run from the plant to the Luthor mansion in record time. He was careful to run through the cornfields along the way so no one would notice him. His last visit here had not left a favorable impression on the town folks. All he wanted to do was save Lex and find a way to stop Alex and then round up Pete and Whitney before they got into any trouble. "A simple plan," Clark thought.  
  
Clark stood outside of the gate perimeters watching for any movements in the castle. He had decided his best recourse was a swift and deliberate strike to get Lex and get out before anything else had time to happen.  
  
"Lex," Clark thought about his friend. He had kept his secrets from his supposed best friend from the moment they had met. Lex had no idea that Clark was an alien with super human powers, and Clark had promised his parent he would never tell him or anyone else, ever.  
  
The older young man had his suspicions about Clark for some time, and made it clear that he was curious, but up until yesterday, he did not realize the full extent of these deceptions. When last Clark was here in the alternate reality, Alex Luthor had accidentally discovered Clark's powers and swore he would find a way to use them for his own purposes of ruling the planet. Being a man of his word, Alex (Lex's alternate self.) found a way to bridge the gap between the two realities and along with his one successful clone of Clark came to hunt him down so he could use the rest of Clark's DNA to create more clones. Clones he could use as a super army of his own to take over Earth.  
  
Clark tried not to think back to his father who lay with a broken back from being attacked by the cloned Clark. Alex had used his parents to lure Clark into a trap, but his plan was spoiled by Lex who was taken capture in his stead. That was why Clark followed them back to this world to rescue Lex, but after the way he had lied to his friend all these months, it was unclear if Lex would accept his help or even need to be rescued at all. If Alex were willing to use Clark for his powers, then how far off would Lex be from having the same desires. Clark had convinced himself that the two versions of Lex were nothing alike, but even in his deep denial; he still knew that they were still basically the same person inside.  
  
It was for those reasons Clark found himself waiting outside the gates at Luthor Mansion instead of rushing head long in to get his friend out. He could easily slip through the fence like he had hundreds of times before. He could be inside the building long before the guards ever knew he was there or before the wind drifted his sent over to the guard dogs who were nowhere in sight.  
  
"I have to save Lex," He determined within himself. So Clark slid his long lanky body through the bars and stepped onto the hallowed ground of the Luthor Mansion. He made a quick sprint run to the front door at his top speed and stopped just before them.  
  
"This could be a trap," he thought.  
  
Behind him, he could hear the dogs barking as they were making their approach. The barks were followed by the voices of the hurried grounds guards. They were making their way to him faster than Clark had anticipated. There was no time to act, if he delayed, he would have to fight and possibly hurt an innocent Luthor employee.  
  
Clark reached for the handles of the door and pushed the solid steel doors open to reveal the inner foyer of the mansion. He had thrust the doors so hard so quickly; he had not realized the volts of electricity coursing up his arms into his body. The jolts were far more than any human could ever take and survive, but thankfully Clark was not human. Yet even his body had it's limits and he could not remove his hands from the iron handles of the door. He shook violently as the currants rushed through his body. Lightning sparks seemed to shoot out at various points of his flesh. After a few long seconds, Clark slumped forward but his hands had been seared to the door and he hung low to the ground by the two handles.  
  
"Mr. Kent," Alex Luthor walked into the foyer holding a remote in his hand. "We were expecting you."  
  
Lex ran out from the same room behind him and inspected Clark. "You idiot," He screamed. "You promised me you weren't going to kill him."  
  
"And I didn't, Lex," Alex grinned. "He's still breathing. I think."  
  
Lex got on his knees and looked the unconscious Clark over. "He's alive. Barely," he stated. "No thanks to you and your electrical toys."  
  
"Did you really think I would let him walk right in here unhampered," Alex asked. "Your friend Clark is far too dangerous to let off the leash."  
  
"Hang on, Clark," Lex said carefully prying his right hand from the door. "All this guy wants is a little DNA and then he'll let you go." He looked up at Alex with evil eyes.  
  
"Of course," Alex grinned walking over to them. He raised his leg and kicked Clark's left hand free from the handle, and his body slumped to the floor. Small pieces of Clark's flesh still hung on the metal. "Look what we have here," he grinned again. "DNA."  
  
Lex could not believe how evil even an alternate version of him self could be.  
  
To Be Continued 


	5. Chapter 5

1.1.1 Chapter Five  
  
(Editor's note: This portion of the story takes place in the alternate reality where our Clark, Lex, Whitney and Pete have traveled. They will interact with Alex, Lana, Chloe, Martha, Jonathan and the clone Clark of the alternate universe.)  
  
  
  
"Lana," a distant familiar voice rose in her ear, as her unconscious mind was lead back to consciousness. The room was warm and everything around her took a white hazy glow for a few moments. She blinked her eyes and tried to focus on the face that was before her. After a few more blinks of her blurred vision, the person who leaned over her came into focus.  
  
"Whitney," she sighed in a low voice.  
  
"Yeah, it's me babe," he sat her up. "Try not to move to fast. You fell awfully hard."  
  
"But how?" She reached up to touch his face.  
  
"How what?" He asked.  
  
"How are you here?" She replied.  
  
"Lana, I live right down the street, don't I?" He stated and then questioned the facts.  
  
She was at a lost for words and just stared at him. "You're pregnant," he said touching her large belly that was covered by her uniform.  
  
"Of course I am," she gave him a puzzled glance. "I'm due any day now."  
  
Whitney held his head low. "Who?" He muttered. "Who's the father?"  
  
Her jaw dropped in amazement. "Why, you are, of course. I've only talked about it every time I went to visit you and in all my letters."  
  
"But how?" He questioned. "We never even…"  
  
"Not until me were married, no," she cut in. "Whitney, what is wrong with you? Did you hurt your head or something? What are you even doing here?"  
  
"Married? I don't understand," He replied with his own puzzle look but shook it off. "Pete and I were just stopping in for a little breakfast before school."  
  
Chloe was giving Pete the once over a few feet away. "You're not Pete," she said with a harsh nervous laugh.  
  
"What's going on around here?" Whitney tried not to show the fear he felt for walking into a bad situation. "Why are Pete and I so shocking to you?"  
  
"Because," Martha joined the conversation from her kneeled position where she had just been holding Lana's head. "You should still be up in the Kansas state prison outside of Metropolis, and Pete," she stopped to look over at him. "You should be in your grave at Smallville Memorial Cemetery."  
  
"What?" Pete actually jumped a foot back.  
  
Whitney's face went white. "Jail?" He repeated. He rubbed his face vigorously to perhaps wake himself up from a bad dream. "I can't be in jail."  
  
"Dude," Pete called out to him. "Get over it, I'm dead."  
  
"We should have listened to Clark," Whitney said to Pete.  
  
"You think?" Pete shot back with heavy sarcasm.  
  
"You'll have to pardon the twenty-one questions here," Chloe spoke up. "But why is my dead friend standing here with the guy who killed him and who should be miles away in prison? Not to mention that they brought along the creepy Christmas visitor who turned our lives up side down a while back."  
  
Pete could not help staring at her. "I'm dead," he repeated softly. "And he killed me?" He pointed to a startled Whitney.  
  
Chloe nodded her head a few times.  
  
"Dude!" Pete yelled at Whitney.  
  
"I didn't do anything!" He defended himself.  
  
"You hung him from a pole in a corn field and left him to die," Chloe told him harshly.  
  
"That wasn't Pete," Whitney insisted. "It was Clark and he lived."  
  
"Tell that to the guy we buried," Chloe retorted.  
  
"Oh, man," Whitney shook his head. "We have to tell them, Pete."  
  
"Tell us what?" Martha asked getting defensive.  
  
"Mrs. Kent," Pete said calmly. "We are not exactly who you think we are."  
  
"I've heard that one before," she frowned.  
  
Pete was just about to explain when they heard a thump. They turned and saw that Clark's clone had fallen on the floor and was convulsing.  
  
"Oh, my God," Chloe ran over to him. "What is wrong with him?" She tried to hold him still.  
  
"Be careful," Pete warned.  
  
"We need to call the police, and an ambulance for your friend," Martha said as she stood up.  
  
"No," Whitney jumped up. "Let us explain."  
  
"Oweeee," Lana screamed lurching forward.  
  
"What is it?" Martha knelt back at her side.  
  
"The baby, Mrs. Kent," she looked at her with fear. "I broke my water when I fell, and now I'm having contractions. I think the baby is coming."  
  
"What?" Pete and Whitney both said in unison.  
  
"Your friend needs a doctor," Chloe called from the booth.  
  
Pete stepped next to Whitney. "Dude, we are having a bad day."  
  
"I know," Whitney brushed back his blond hair in frustration. "I don't think this could get any worse."  
  
"You inside!" A loud voice called from outside the restaurant. "This is sheriff Roscoe P. Coletrain, I know you have an escape convict named Whitney Fordman in there. Whitney, come out with your hands up, and no funny stuff."  
  
Pete and Whitney looked at each other with disgust. "You had to go and say it couldn't get any worse, didn't you?" Pete told him. "All I wanted was a muffin."  
  
"Awe, geesh," Whitney sighed heavily as he walked carefully over to the window. "Thelma and Louise didn't have this much trouble."  
  
"A chick flick?" Chloe looked up at him.  
  
"She made me watch it," he pointed to Lana on the floor. He closed the blinds on the door and locked it. "We are so dead," he said leaning against it.  
  
"Speak for yourself," Pete grunted with grit. "Thanks to you, in this world I'm already a Popsicle in a box."  
  
Whitney smacked his head in defeat.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Clark," the voice pulled at him trough the dark void. "It's time to wake up, Clark."  
  
"Lex?" Clark opened his eyes slowly to his friend's call.  
  
His eyes fluttered for a few seconds then he saw Lex's face smiling over him. "Welcome back to the real world, kid."  
  
"Kid?" Clark questioned. Lex was not the one who called him that, but Alex was.  
  
He looked again to see that it was Alex who was leaning over him. "Alex," he gritted his teeth.  
  
"You look disappointed, old friend," Alex grinned. "I thought you would be happy to see me since you came all this way to find me."  
  
Clark tried to sit up, but was jerked back down by the heavy chains that kept him tied to the bed frame.  
  
"Oh," Alex pulled back. "Don't hurt yourself there, Clark. I would hate to for you to knock yourself out again."  
  
"You know I can easily break these chains," Clark warned.  
  
"Perhaps," Alex snarled. "That is why I brought a small insurance policy with me." He stood up and revealed a large piece of meteor rock on the dresser a few feet away. "I was very careful not to put it within your reach. I believe this will keep you here for a time."  
  
"Ahgh," Clark turned away from it. "It's too much."  
  
"Let me be the judge of that," he laughed. "Besides, it is only temporary. Once my team has extracted enough DNA from your body, I will have no further use of your services."  
  
"Then what?" Clark growled.  
  
"Then it's out with the trash. Like always," Alex laughed again.  
  
Clark's head fell back on the pillow. "Where's Lex?" He demanded in a grunt.  
  
"Lex is being well taken care of," Alex told him.  
  
"I want to see him," Clark demanded.  
  
"Strange," Alex commented. "He doesn't want to see you."  
  
"Please," Clark took another approach with a pleading horse voice. "I need to see Lex. I need to know he's alright."  
  
Alex was puzzled by his dedication to his friend. Could his alternate self have let someone in to his inner circle? Not just anyone, but a super powered alien from the tiny hick town of Smallville. The concept of friendship had long confused Alex. He was a Luthor, and Luthors did not need closeness to other people. When the usual male urges would require attention, there were always plenty of willing playthings around to calm the desires. Why would Lex desire someone so primal as a friend to fill his hours?  
  
"Please," Clark repeated.  
  
Alex stood at the door for a minute. "I will pass along your message, but I make no promises that he will want to see you." He opened the door and a team of people in yellow hazard gear came into the room.  
  
"These people will be collecting some tissue samples," he told Clark as they surrounded him and began to tug at his cloths. "Do try to be acuminating."  
  
Fear filled Clark's face as Alex stepped out of the room. He watched as they began revealing probing tools and surgical instruments all around him.  
  
Alex found Lex waiting out in the hall. He had been pacing nervously while he was in the room. Lex was clearly upset by what Alex was doing to Clark, but tried not to let his worry show when he stepped out to meet him.  
  
"Well?" He tried to sound confident and at eased.  
  
"Your friend Clark is a very determined young man," Alex said. "But I believe with the help of the meteor rock and a few tools I had fused from it, we should be able to get the tissue samples we need."  
  
"How much tissue?" Lex asked.  
  
"Enough," Alex shrugged.  
  
Lex ran his hand down the door for a second, and then turned back to Alex. "We have a deal," he spoke sternly. "You take what you need, and then you send Clark home."  
  
"Of course," Alex smiled. "What ever remains will be sent back through the transporter."  
  
"Remains?" Lex repeated with alarm. He was not hiding his emotions very well, but he and Alex had an agreement. "You said you wouldn't kill him."  
  
"And I will stick to my word," Alex assured him. "I have no intention on killing Clark, but there is no telling what the doctors may have to do to obtain the amount of tissue required for an army of super men."  
  
It was then they heard a loud scream coming from the room. Lex knew Clark's voice instinctively. The sound was so shrilled and filled with pain.  
  
"There," Alex tapped his hand on the door. "They are hard at work already."  
  
Alex walked away from the door while Lex remained behind and stared at the door. He had never heard Clark scream in such a manner. What ever they were doing to him was painful. It was painful enough to make an invulnerable alien scream in agony.  
  
Alex turned back. "They will be in there for a while," He told him. "Let me show you something while we wait."  
  
Lex was hesitant, but then chose to follow him slowly.  
  
  
  
Lex followed Alex down the corridor to another of the many rooms in the Scottish style mansion. Alex finally stopped in front of one of the doors and smiled at him.  
  
"There's someone in here I want you to meet," he announced when he opened the door.  
  
Lex peaked into the dimly lit room but stood outside the door. "Who's in there?" He asked.  
  
"Go in and see," Alex replied with a hint of a smile.  
  
Lex gave him a suspicious look.  
  
"Oh, all right," Alex sighed and entered the room first. He walked over to the bed and stood besides a sleeping figure.  
  
Lex slowly followed inching his way into the chamber. He too walked to the foot of the bed and tried to adjust his sight to see who was on it.  
  
"Father?" He finally saw.  
  
"Yes," Alex replied with what Lex was sure to be giddy excitement. "I brought him here a few years ago, and he's been in this bed ever since."  
  
"What's wrong with him?" Lex inquired.  
  
"Several massive strokes," Alex explained. "You see, after I was old enough to take over the company, I decided that Father was standing in the way of taking Luthor Corps from it's modest standing in the fortune five hundred to the dynamic Lex Corps. A company not only in the top ten percent of the world's businesses, but renowned in space exploration as well."  
  
"What did you do to cause these strokes?" Lex questioned. "My father is the picture of health."  
  
"So was mine," Alex laughed. "It was just a matter of a few well place chemicals that some how found their way into his blood stream and then he was a weak and helpless kitten."  
  
Lex could not believe the ruthless evil that his alter self was capable of. "That is barbaric," he exclaimed. "Father was always a hard hearted son of a …" He stopped himself. "Well, he can be a real jerk, but no one deserves to be treated like this."  
  
"Oh, but we both know Father does," Alex leaned into his ear. "I thought about killing him, but then I remembered. Only the good die young."  
  
Lex was at a lost for words. Was he himself capable of such evil as this?  
  
Lionel Luthor opened his eyes and stared helplessly at the ceiling.  
  
"Look at him, Lex," Alex whispered. "Look and tell me this is not the most beautiful sight you have ever seen. Father laying helpless, speechless and at your mercy."  
  
"No," Lex looked away.  
  
"What is wrong with you Lex?" he gave a harsh retort. "Did you loose your nerve along with your hair?"  
  
Lex turned back with fire in his eyes. "What's wrong with me?" He repeated sternly. "What's wrong with you? Did my life change so much just because I lost my hair? I know it was humbling, but how could a monster like you be inside of me?"  
  
"A monster?" Alex repeated. A hurt look actually came to his face. "I am not a monster, Lex. I am just enacting revenge for all the horrible things he ever did to me. He deserves this and more."  
  
"Come off of it, Alex," Lex was yelling. "He is scum, but he never did anything worth being a prisoner in his own body. He was selfish and thoughtless. He never paid any attention to you and packed you off to boarding schools and endless vacations wherever he was not, but he never committed a crime worse than ignoring you."  
  
A look came over Alex's face like Lex had never seen in his own. Disgust, hatred, loathing and fear were all present at the same instant. "Ignore?" He said with disdain in his voice. "I only wished Father did ignore me. Sure he did in the daytime, but …" he stopped short of saying anymore. Even after all this time, the events struck deep in his core.  
  
"What are you saying?" Lex asked as Alex turned away to face the old man.  
  
"I did to him what he did to me," he said softly. "I made him a prisoner in his own body like he did to me in mine."  
  
Lex listen intently as Alex went on. A few strands of his long red hair had come loose from his ponytail and hung down the side of his face. He tugged at the locks gently and looked at Lex's hairless head.  
  
"It must be the hair," he said as his eyes glazed over. "I always had bright red hair like Mother's. She always loved that it looked so much like hers. That is the reason I try not to cut it often. It's a part of her that is with me always." His voice became drawn. "I guess Father thought it was a part of her, too."  
  
Alex sat on the edge of the bed looking down at his father. "It started shortly after the funeral. He would come into my room after he thought I was sleeping. Even with all his extra marital affairs, he still missed the one that got away from him before he was finished with her. He would come over to the bed and stroke my long red hair."  
  
Lex closed his eyes. His father had never once come into his room after the death of his mother. He often felt that he had lost both parents that day, but he knew Lionel was never there for him even before her death. At that moment he longed for Lionel's missed affections, but he also suspected what was to be said next, and he despised his father all the more.  
  
"It started with a few pats of the hair," Alex continued. "Then after a few more weeks, he would touch the soft skin on my cheeks."  
  
"Stop," Lex spoke meekly.  
  
"Then he would run his hand down my back. Perhaps trying to comfort me even though I was suppose to be asleep, but it was more for him than me."  
  
"Alex, please don't." Lex pleaded softly.  
  
Alex looked up at his alternate self. "It never stopped," he told him. "Each time he would touch something else. Each day I dreaded what was to come next."  
  
"Stop," Lex turned away in a failed attempt to not hear what he was being told. "I can't hear anymore."  
  
"He was my father, Lex," A tear rolled down Alex cheek. "A father shouldn't do that to his son."  
  
Lex leaned back on the wall and attempted to hold down the vial that peaked in his throat.  
  
"I tried to find someone to help, but father made sure my contact with other people was limited," Alex went on. "Everyone around me was on his payroll and feared him. What few people I asked for help from, refused. One even told me that I was old enough, and I should fight back against him. He's my father, for God's sake. I should not have to fight him like that."  
  
Lex slid down the wall and sat in a lump on the floor. He wanted to cry and scream all at the same time, but instead covered his head with his arms. He could not hear anything else. He wanted to block out Alex and the faint sounds of Clark's screams up the hall.  
  
Alex leaned over and whispered into his father's ear. "You don't deserve the freedom of death. I will keep you here for a very long time to come. This way I can be sure you rot in the hell I have created for you."  
  
Lex leaned his head against the wall and looked up at his alter. There was so much pain in his alter persona. All of it was kept behind a wall of hate. After a few moments, Alex regained his composure and saw that he was being watched.  
  
"What is it?" He asked.  
  
Lex was a mixed of emotions himself, but tried to regain control of his reactions. "Why?" He asked. "Why after so much pain inside, would you choose to inflict more on other people?"  
  
"Lionel Luthor is not people, Lex," he returned. "He was the one who taught me that we reap what we sew in this world. Of course to him he was thinking of power over the adversary, but he had no idea how much pain he had caused his own son."  
  
"What about Clark and the Kents?" Lex asked. "They never did anything to you."  
  
"The Kents were a means to an end," he smiled. "Casualties of war, as it were."  
  
"And Clark?"  
  
Alex stood up and walked over to him. He leaned down into his face for effect. "We both know that Clark is not human, Lex,"  
  
Lex could swear he saw flames behind his pupils and he swallowed hard.  
  
Alex walked over to the door and opened it.  
  
"Where are you going?" Lex posed to get up.  
  
"Don't bother getting up," Alex smirked. "I have a little work to do with our friend Clark down the hall. I'll come back for you when I am ready. Enjoy your visit with Daddy." He slid out the door and locked it behind him.  
  
"No," Lex jumped for the door a second too late. He crashed his shoulder against it when he stopped. "Don't do this, Alex," He yelled through the wood. "He's just a kid."  
  
  
  
  
  
Pete was being extra jittery when he walked over to where Whitney stood at the booth where Martha had placed Lana. The two men had gotten themselves in over their heads, and they had not even been in Smallville an entire day.  
  
"What are we going to do?" Pete asked in a hushed voice. "The cops are collecting outside. They think we have taken these people hostage."  
  
"I think we have," Whitney replied.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Think, man," The blond teen told him. "They think I'm this realities Whitney. They think I'm an escaped convict. There is no telling what they will do if I walk out there. We have to stay here until I come up with a plan."  
  
"Oh, that's a good idea," Chloe called from the next booth where she was giving the clone Clark a drink of water. "Bad enough you are listening to a blond jock, but one who has killed you once already."  
  
"I'm not that Whitney, Chloe," he turned harshly to her. "And if I did kill Pete, how could he be standing here talking to us?"  
  
"That's what I would like to know," she said back.  
  
Whitney shook his head and turned his attention back to Lana and Pete slid in the seat opposite Chloe.  
  
Chloe eyed him suspiciously. "Pete would never take hostages," she said.  
  
"You're not a hostage," He assured her. "No one is going hurt anyone."  
  
"Then let us go," she added.  
  
"We can't do that," he said. "We need you here to make sure they don't charge in on us."  
  
"Oh, so we're not hostages, just human shields?"  
  
"No," he protested. "Don't make this into something that it is not. We just need time to make an escape plan."  
  
She put the cup down and leaned on the table. "Then tell me something as long as we can't go anywhere. If Pete is dead, and the blow pop over there says he's not an escaped convict, then who are you really?"  
  
Whitney had looked up to give her a rye look for her blow pop comment when he and Pete caught eyes. "We have to tell them," Pete told him.  
  
Lana moaned with a contraction, and Whitney's attention span was lost to her.  
  
"Tell us what?" Chloe asked demanding Pete's attention.  
  
"We are Pete Ross and Whitney Fordman, but we are not the guys you knew," his face grew intense. "Have you ever heard of level three?"  
  
"Like in a video game?" She asked.  
  
"No, like in the secret experiment level at Luthor Corps Smallville plant." Pete told her. "It's under the fertilizer plant, and your Lex has been running experiments on breaking the dimensional barriers or alternate universes. Last Christmas our friend, Clark, fell through a portal somehow and ended up here. When he was able to get back to our reality, he left some kind of trail behind that your Lex was able to trace and follow back to our world."  
  
"The alternate universe?" She asked with skepticism.  
  
"Yes," Pete smiled, believing she was following his story. "Well, when he came to our world, he kidnapped our Lex and took him back here. Clark was tied up with his family, so Whitney and I decided to come through the portal Alex left behind and save Lex. Only we had no idea about our own histories here. We never would have stopped in here if we knew that it would cause such a problem."  
  
Chloe cocked and eye brow at him. "So, you are Pete, but from some bizzaro universe not our own?"  
  
"Yes," Pete sighed.  
  
"You must think I am a complete fool," she shot angrily. "What kinda con has Whitney set up to get himself off a murder rap? To use a dupe of my best friend is really sick."  
  
"I'm not a dupe," Pete protested again. "I'm the real Pete. In my world, Whitney hung Clark out in the field, not me. Clark was saved by Lex and he's fine."  
  
She looked at the clone that was resting with closed eyes against the wall. "Yeah, he looks real good."  
  
Pete saw that she was not buying the truth. Now he wondered if he should try to explain the clone.  
  
"He's not the Clark that was hung out that night. He's also not the Clark you met at Christmas," he decided to tell her.  
  
"Wait," She stopped him. "The Clark I met was from your world. There are only two worlds, but this guy is not the same one. How many Clarks are there on your world?"  
  
Again Pete sighed. "He's not our Clark."  
  
This time she raised both eyebrows. "Then who's is he?"  
  
"Alex's," He said meekly.  
  
"Alex is a planet?"  
  
"Alex is a Luthor," Pete replied. "I guess you could say he's this world's Clark, only he's not real. He's a clone."  
  
Chloe took a long look at Clark's clone.  
  
"He has some type of super powers." Pete went on. "The necklace prevents him from using them somehow. It's also making him sick, but we have no choice but to leave it on him. If we remove it, he'll escape and warn Alex that we are here to rescue Lex."  
  
"As apposed to rescuing yourself, right now," she snorted.  
  
Pete gave her quick quirky smile.  
  
"Do you know what I think?" She leaned across the table to him. "I think that you are some type of freaky Star Trek Convention escapee who has gotten in over your head by befriending Whitney and somehow this other con Clark is in on it. So save your stories for sci-fi fans on the net, because I am not biting."  
  
Pete sat back in defeat as she walked away to another table.  
  
"Whitney," Lana called from the other booth where Martha held her. Her eyes were half opened and she seemed to be having a difficult time staying awake.  
  
Whitney didn't know what to do until Martha instructed. "Take my place here and hold her up," she said squeezing her way out. "Who ever you really are, she thinks you are her Whitney, and she needs you."  
  
"What do I do?" He asked taking her place.  
  
"Keep her awake and focused." Martha instructed kneeling at the end of the seat. "She's becoming feverish and is losing consciousness. Something is wrong, and if we don't deliver the baby soon, it could be too late for the two of them."  
  
"Oh, my God," his eyes got big. "You mean Lana could…."  
  
"Focus," Martha gave him a stern look. "You," she turned to Pete. "Get me some clean linen and rags. Also start boiling water. See if you can find some sharp knives."  
  
Pete focused his stare at Whitney.  
  
"Do what she says," he yelled. "We have to help Lana."  
  
"Chloe," Martha called from her crouched position. "I need you to help me."  
  
"But Mrs. Kent," Chloe stood up and gave her an unease smile. "I don't know nothing about birthing no babies," she attempted to make light of the moment.  
  
Martha gave her the stern eye again.  
  
"Sorry," Chloe came over with a tablecloth and placed it over Lana's mid section. "I guess I had a 'Gone With The Wind' moment there."  
  
"Get down here and help hold her knees apart," Martha instructed.  
  
Chloe did what she was told and kneeled at Martha side. "Well this is a side of the home coming queen I've never seen before."  
  
Pete came running in with an arm full of tablecloths. "I got the stuff you," he stopped and was transfixed by the sight of Lana.  
  
After a few nervous seconds, Whitney looked up at him. "Dude," he yelled at him. "That's my girl you're eying."  
  
"Oh, sorry," Pete shook his head and continued his task at hand.  
  
The three of them huddled around Lana and began to prepare for the birth of her child. While in the corner of the next booth, the clone Clark continued to slip in and out of consciousness. He tried feebly to reach for and remove the meteor necklace, but could not find the energy.  
  
  
  
It had been a while since Alex left Lex in the room with his father. He made no effort to approach the elder man. Lex busied himself listening for footsteps out in the hall. The screams from Clark's room had stopped for well over an hour, but it was unclear if they had stopped torturing him, or did he just run out of voice. The worst of his solitude was the not knowing.  
  
He hadn't given much thought to how upset he was with his young friend, and now was not the time to start. As disappointed as he might be, he knew Clark was suffering beyond anything he ever had before. Again the thought of his own inner evil creped up his spine like a chill. If Alex was capable of these things, could he be too? Would he be able to hurt another person in the way Alex was hurting Clark, even if they were not friends.  
  
His attention at the door was interrupted by a loud grunt from Lionel's bed. It was the first sound he had heard in the room other than his own in the entire time he was there. He glanced back to see the old man trying to lift his head from the bed.  
  
"You can move?" Lex said softly as he walked over to him.  
  
Again Lionel moved his head and tried to look at Lex.  
  
"Does Alex know that you can do that?" Lex questioned.  
  
To his further surprise, Lionel lifted his left hand about six inches off the bed. He wiggled his fingers and Lex took it as a gesture that he wanted him to take hold of it. In all the years since his mother's death, Lex and his father had not touched each other in a caring manner and it had been a while before that. It took a media circus for Lionel to even fake affections for his son. At the funeral, the elder Luthor played the caring parent and doted over his son while in the presence of other mourners. At home, Lionel had Lex's room moved to the opposite wing so he would not have to hear the sobs from his son's chambers at night.  
  
Lex pondered the option of reaching for his father's hand. He also remembered that this man was not the same Lionel Luthor who sired him, but the father of the other person called Alex who in some ways scared even this Lex. He thought about what Alex had told him about his father's mistreatment of him. As evil and vicious as it seemed to be holding his father a prisoner, a part of Lex agreed that he deserved this punishment.  
  
Lionel turned his head slightly to Lex. "Help me," the frail and harsh voice from years of neglect spoke softly.  
  
The sound of his voice startled Lex and he stepped back.  
  
Lionel's strength seemed to wane, and his hand fell back to the mattress.  
  
"Alex thinks you are completely immobile," Lex told to him with a surprised tone. "He must have no idea that you can do these things."  
  
Lionel licked his lips. "Help," he repeated his plead.  
  
Lex shot a look back at the door. He was afraid what Alex would do if he walked in to hear his father speak. At the very least, there would be more medication. He feared what more drugs to this frail man's system would do.  
  
"You can't talk," he warned him. "You can't let Alex know you can talk. He'll only make things worst for you."  
  
Lionel blinked his eyes twice. Was this a sign that he understood, or just a common reaction to Lex's voice.  
  
"Besides." Lex reasoned out. "I can't help even if I could. The ways things look, I am as much a prisoner here as you."  
  
This time Lionel shut his eyes for a moment as if to nod his understanding.  
  
To his surprise, a twinge of anger came over Lex. "He's actually coming out of it," he thought. "That stubborn old coot won't stay down."  
  
The years of hatred for his own father came rushing back to Lex. "So you are getting better in spite of Alex's best efforts. I know he thinks nothing is getting past him concerning you. When it comes to getting even, he doesn't leave anything to chance. I know, because I am him, and I wouldn't."  
  
Lex paced at the foot of the bed. He was torn as what to do next. He was sure that Alex would risk killing his own father to keep him trapped in that room and he did not know if he could risk a possible death sentence of a man who in a another time and place was his father. Then there was all the pain both the Lionel Luthors has caused their sons. Could he let this slug of a man get better after what he did to his own child?  
  
"I need to tell Alex," He reasoned out and told Lionel. "As much as I hate to see you like this, you do not deserve to ever get out of this bed ever again."  
  
He walked back to the man's side and leaned over him. "How could you do it, Dad?" He asked. "How could you attack your own son time and time again?"  
  
Lex walked over the darken window a few feet away. "How could you not love a child whose only mistake in life was to love you first?"  
  
Lionel tried to follow the young man with his eyes.  
  
"He tried everything to get your attention," Lex continued. "If you had asked, he would have wrangled Heaven and Earth just to have you pay a little attention to him. He would sit for hours with the only person who truly loved him, as she would tell him stories of how wonderful his father was. She would tuck him in each night and made sure he said a prayer for his valiant father who she told him was off fighting off the dragons to keep them safe. I believed everything Mom ever said about you. I believed you were gallant and heroic while putting us before yourself."  
  
Lex stared at the blacken window as if he could see through it as he spoke. "She painted a picture of you with rainbows and white horses in my head. To her, you could do no wrong by me. Too bad that those noble stories about you were more fictitious than the ones in my book of fairy tales."  
  
He walked back over to the bed. "You turned out uglier than any toad and twice as hateful as an evil king. You ruled your kingdom of Luthor Corps more viscously than any tainted warrior of the children's books. You tainted my mother's kingdom. You took her heart and you broke over and over again," Lex leaned in again. "They told us that her heart was weak and gave out on her, but I know the truth old man. You broke her will so many times, she no longer had the strength or desire to let her own heart beat one more time."  
  
Fear was registering in Lionel's eyes as he looked up at the young stranger to him.  
  
"To me, you killed her that day," Lex whispered. "You lost the only redeemable part of the Luthor family, and you could not care less. What you didn't know is that you also killed me that day Father. The old Lex Luthor died and was buried with my mother in that grave. All that was left was the hate. The resentment and loathing for you. I began to spend every waking moment trying to disgrace and defile the Luthor name; your family name."  
  
Lex jumped again and began pacing. How could this man who was suppose to love him, inspire so much hatred and pain in his heart? He tried to walk off the pain.  
  
Lex turned back to Lionel. "She's dead and you still live," he said with gritted teeth. "How dare you still live?"  
  
Lionel watched as Lex picked up a pillow from the opposite side of the bed. He held it in two fists next to his chest. "You are so helpless now," Lex said approaching his father again. "It would be so easy to just end it all."  
  
Lionel's chest began to heave up and down. Even as helpless as he was here, Lionel still had the desire to go on living. Lex slowly lowered the pillow over his face. He watched as the older man gasped in fear. He was struggling to regain his breath before the pillow was even in place.  
  
The pillow got closer to his face, and Lex took one last look. There was fear in Lionel's eyes like he had never seen before on his father. His own hands became paralyzed in mid air as he attempted to lower the smothering device. It would be so easy, and only take a few minutes. The leech of a man was weak and helpless. He would not be able to put up a fight.  
  
Once his hands were moving again, Lex was able to get the pillow inches from his face. He could actually feel the indent from his nose entering the blush of the bedding. Then, just as the notion had hit him, Lex's sensibility fought back and he whipped the pillow across the room smashing the oil lamp on the dresser a few feet away.  
  
"Argh," Lex let out a grunt of frustration as he fell on to his father's chest. "I won't do it," he sobbed. "I will not give you or Alex the satisfaction of having your death on my hands."  
  
Lex gathered the blanket and pajama top on Lionel's chest and wept into them. "Why couldn't you just love me Dad?" He cried. "All I ever wanted was you to love me like Mom did."  
  
Normally a Luthor, much less Lex, would never allow himself to display such emotions. He would especially not show his feeling in front of or towards his father. Yet today was not a normal day, this was not a normal situation. Lex let all his anguish and fears be buried in the linen.  
  
It was a few seconds, but slowly Lex felt a hand resting on his back At first he thought Alex had come in, but he saw that Lionel had worked up enough energy to place his hand on his son's back. His fingers danced a few times as if to pat him slightly. The small attempt at comfort only helped to sink Lex's heart deeper into his grief. He buried his face again and cried.  
  
  
  
"Lana," Martha's voice called into the darkness of her head. "Lana, you need to stay with us."  
  
There was no response as Martha again tried to apply pressure to her mid- section.  
  
"She keeps drifting off, Mrs. Kent," Whitney told her from where he was holding Lana up against his chest in the corner booth. "Can't we do something?"  
  
"She needs a hospital, Whitney," Martha said through a grunt. "Only moving her now would make matter worse. We need to get this baby out of her."  
  
"This is too risky," he said. "Even though they think I am the guy who should be in jail, I need to go out there and turn myself in and get some medics in here to help you."  
  
"They'll take you right to jail," Martha said reaching under the covers.  
  
"I don't have a choice," he returned with a worried look. "I'll have to trust that they can sort things out and figure out that your Whitney is still behind bars where he belongs."  
  
"Then how will you explain two of you, Whitney?" Her brow creased from the concentration.  
  
"I don't know, but I have to do it," he began to get up when he heard Lana's voice.  
  
"Whitney," she called softly before he could move away. "Where are you going?"  
  
"To get help, babe," he tried to comfort her again.  
  
"No," she grabbed his arm. "Don't leave me, please."  
  
Whitney looked at Martha who shot him a cautious look. He settled back into the seat and held on her.  
  
"Alright," he smiled at her. "I won't go anywhere."  
  
Lana took a painful breath.  
  
Pete was slumped over the counter when Chloe walked up behind him. She looked him over and found that he was identical to her dead friend in every way but one. He was still alive. After a few minutes, Pete saw her watchful eye.  
  
"What?" He questioned her.  
  
She walked around and leaned on the other side of the counter. "Is what you say about two worlds true?"  
  
Pete took a deep breath and pondered how much he should share. "Yeah," he release in a soft breath.  
  
"So the Pete Ross I know is really dead?"  
  
"Well, unless this is one of those daytime serials, yeah," he replied. "I'm afraid he is."  
  
"How does it feel?" She asked. "I mean, how does it feel to know that here you are dead?"  
  
Pete thought about it for a few minutes. "It's a little unnerving. My opinion of Whitney has been lowered to an all time low. I kinda wish we knew these things before we came here, but then again we never really gave Clark time for a briefing."  
  
"What am I like?" She asked. "I mean you and Whitney seem to know us, but we never met. So I'm guessing that Lana, Martha and I have doubles over where you come from."  
  
Pete gave her a sweet grin as he looked into her eyes. "Like this," he said. "If I didn't know any better, I could swear that you and the Chloe I know are the same person. I mean actually in a way you are, but everyone else here is a little different, but not you. Chloe is Chloe is Chloe."  
  
She gave him a bashful smile back.  
  
"Pete," Martha called out. "Please go in the back and see if you can find a first aid kit with alcohol or any type of cooking wines. Find anything you can that we can use to sterilize these knives."  
  
"Knives?" He repeated.  
  
"What are you going to do?" Whitney asked.  
  
"Lana doesn't have the strength to deliver this child the rest of the way," Martha told him. "I need to go in after it."  
  
"Oh, my God," Whitney gasped. He had to fight off the fear the welted up in him and held Lana tightly. "Have you ever done this before?"  
  
Martha tried to give him her most reassuring face. "No," she admitted softly. "But we have no choice. Both Lana and the baby will die if I don't do something."  
  
Lana seemed to sense the danger and held onto Whitney's arm again. She opened her eyes and looked into his worried face. "Promise me," she said.  
  
"Promise you what, babe?" He asked fighting the lump in his throat.  
  
"Promise me that my baby will know that I loved him."  
  
Whitney had to look away at that point. He gathered up all his inner strength and smiled at her again. "I don't have to promise you that, Lana, You will be able to tell our child how much he is loved every day of his life."  
  
A sharp pain shot through her again and she passed out.  
  
Pete ran up to them with a bottle of rubbing alcohol. "I found this in the bathroom," He said handing it to Martha.  
  
Martha took the bottle and dumped a large portion of it onto the knife she held in her hand. She washed her hands in more of the liquid.  
  
"How will you know if you are too close to the baby?" Chloe asked joining the group.  
  
Martha gave her a worried look. "I will have to work on what I can feel," she replied. "The sense of touch is the only tool I have right now."  
  
"I can help," A soft voice came from the other booth.  
  
They all looked over and saw the cloned Clark trying to lift his head.  
  
"What does he mean?" Martha asked Whitney.  
  
"I have x-ray vision," he added to Whitney's surprise. "I can help guide your cuts."  
  
"Is this for real?" Chloe asked.  
  
"I don't know," Pete answered. "He has super powers, but we don't know the full extent."  
  
"It's true," The clone buried his face in his arms on the table. "Take the necklace off, and I'll prove it."  
  
"It's a trick," Pete warned. "He just wants us to release him so he can get away."  
  
"What if he's telling the truth and he wants to help?" Whitney pondered. "Can we risk Lana and the baby's life by not taking the chance?"  
  
Chloe slid into the booth next to the clone. She picked up his head with her hands and stared into his eyes.  
  
"I can help," he said softly.  
  
"I think he's telling the truth," she declared. "I can see it in his eyes. Even if he's not the Clark I met before, he still has the honest glow."  
  
Whitney looked over at Pete who stood nervously behind Martha. "It's your call," Pete said. "There is too much to be lost here either way. It's either our lives or Lana and the child's"  
  
Whitney turned to Chloe who still held the clone's face in her hands. "Do it," he said.  
  
Chloe took a deep breath and smiled at the young man in her grasps. "I saw this in a movie once," she pulled him close and kissed his lips passionately. She then reach and yanked the necklace from his neck and tossed back over her shoulder across the room.  
  
The clone opened his eyes. "Why did you kiss me first?"  
  
"Like the girl said in the movie, 'I didn't think you would let me later,'" She grinned.  
  
The young man looked around the room and got his bearings.  
  
"So," Pete spoke up. "Will you help Lana?"  
  
  
  
Alexander Luthor was pulled out of the room where the young female doctor was holding Clark Kent. She had only work for the man a short while, but word of his legendary temper and unwillingness to except failure had reached her long ago. So she hesitated, as she had to share with him information she was sure he would not like.  
  
Doctor Alice Walker took a deep breath and began. "I asked you out here to confer on a delicate matter. We are having a problem extracting the amount of DNA that our project requires."  
  
A frown came to Alex's face as she continued. "It was determined that to harvest the best DNA we should do it internally. Yet we were unaware of the young man's alien physiology, and thus the mater had been greatly hampered."  
  
"In what way, Doctor Walker?" He asked with an air of tension about him.  
  
"We have been extraction DNA from every open orifice of his body, but have found that the DNA from his exposed features are all but useless because of the effects the meteor rock seems to be having on his system," She explained. "How ever his inner organs reachable by these opened orifices are providing a minimal harvest."  
  
"So what are you saying?" Alex asked. "You want to cut him open?"  
  
"We believe that the internal organs like his hair used in the previous trials would be the best course of action in this mater," She tried not to let his dead stare discourage her efforts to share all the information he needed to make his decision. "It seems his flesh being exposed to this rock substance you have provided to weaken him has also help to kill the regenerative products of his exposed flesh. So we have determined that the best course would be to go for the inner organs. Our best chance of a full harvest would be the brain stem of the spinal cord."  
  
"The brain stem?" His eyes actually lit up. "Are we talking about stem cell reproduction?"  
  
"Yes, sir," she answered. First with relief that he was pleased with the proposed idea, but then disgusted that he would be so delighted at the results to the subject. "Removing the brain stem would kill the young man of course, but it would also provide us with an inexhaustible source of reproductive cloning cells in which to use for actual clones."  
  
"That would be brilliant," he laughed. "We would be able to produce armies for infinity and beyond."  
  
"Yes, sir," she tried to smile with him. "However, I must make it clear that the subject would have to be destroyed in order to extract this organ."  
  
"Yes, of course," he paced with excitement. "We can keep the remains on ice for further research."  
  
Doctor Walker watched him for a few seconds as he went over numerous possibilities in his head. After a short while he stopped and saw her watching with great interest.  
  
"What is the problem doctor?"  
  
"The subject is a young man, Mr. Luthor," she said with a heavy breath. "He would be ending his life very prematurely. We would have to kill a teenage boy."  
  
Alex stopped and looked deep into her eyes. "This teenage boy is an alien Dr. Walker. He is no more human than your average moon rock. The plan meets to my liking. Proceed."  
  
"Yes, sir," she lowered her head. "We will need a few minutes to prepare. I will have my staff begin the pre-operations."  
  
"Good." Alex grinned as she walked away up the hall.  
  
After the doctor had left, Alex slipped into the room and watched for a few minutes as the other lab assistants cleaned and prepared Clark for the surgery. They washed him down from head to foot in an alcohol substance and then turned him onto his stomach, they cover his hind torso with a sheet and checked to make sure his chains were secured.  
  
"I need a minute alone with our young friend," he told the two assistants. "Go down to the lab and assist Doctor Walker for a while."  
  
"Yes, sir," they nodded and left the room.  
  
Once alone with Clark, Alex sat on the edge of the bed where his face was directed. He ran his hand over Clark's shaved head. "They did a real job on you," he said with a soft giggle. "Now you look more like your friend up the hall than I do."  
  
Clark struggled to open his eyes. He was bruised and beaten, but with the exception of all his body hair being removed and the bruises around his orifices, he was basically intact. The effects of the meteor rock in the room still made him weak and turned his sink a slight pale gray.  
  
"Well, hello, sunshine," Alex grinned into his face. "I thought you would sleep through my entire visit."  
  
"Lex?" Clark forced out.  
  
"Ah, ever the dotting friend," Alex responded. "You needn't be worried about Lex. He is down the hall visiting with father. I believe they have allot to talk about."  
  
Clark licked his lips. "Water," he spoke. "Please."  
  
"Oh, I am sorry, Clark," Alex told him. "I am afraid that drinking must be refrained from for at least twelve hours before surgery. I would be going against doctor's orders if I were to give you water."  
  
Clark took a deep breath and attempted one more word. "Surgery?"  
  
"Yes, of course," Alex was enjoying the moment. "You didn't think we were finished with you yet. We require one more thing from you, kid," he leaned into Clark's ear for dramatic effect. "Your brain stem."  
  
Clark's eyes shot open with surprise. He tried to move, but the chains and his own weakness pulled him back down.  
  
Alex patted him on the head as he got up. "Try not to make a fuss. It will all be over in a little while," He walked to the door and stopped. "Just think of the advancements in science you have been able to help reach today. You will make me a very rich man, again."  
  
He slipped out the door and walked down the hall laughing to him self. Passing the room where Lex was being held, he heard his voice.  
  
"Alex," Lex yelled through the door. "Let me out of here."  
  
"Not yet, Lex," Alex called back. "We are not finished with your friend just yet, and we can not risk you interfering until the job is done."  
  
"How is he?" Lex asked with concern.  
  
The sincerity in his voice surprised Alex. "The kid is holding up very well. We have only one more procedure to perform, and then it will be over."  
  
Lex heard the note of finality in his voice when he spoke. "What do you mean 'OVER'?"  
  
Alex debated with himself on how much he should reveal, but then again, Lex was securely locked away. He was of no threat to the plan. He slowly stepped closer to the door and said with a freighting calm voice into the solid oak wood. "We require one more organ for DNA enhancements. We will be taking Clark's brain stem."  
  
Lex felt as his heart had actually stopped at the sound of the words. He was madder at Clark than he ever could remember, but he was still his friend. He was his adopted little brother in his eyes. The thought of Clark being killed, by his own alternate hands, no less, was too much for him to bear. He leaned against the door and slid to the floor.  
  
Alex heard his body slide against the wood. "Are you not pleased with my research efforts?" He asked jokingly.  
  
Inside the room Lex occupied his mind by digging at a sliver in the door with his fingernail. "You're going to kill him," he moaned in a soft defeated voice.  
  
"Yes, Lex," Alex said back with a large grin.  
  
"He's just a kid," Lex spoke again in the same bemoaned manner.  
  
"And with so many harvested resources," Alex cackled as he walked away.  
  
Lex continued to pick at the door and leaned his head against it. "He's just a kid," he repeated.  
  
To Be Continued 


	6. Chapter 6

1.1.1 Chapter Six  
  
(Editor's note: This portion of the story takes place in the alternate reality where our Clark, Lex, Whitney and Pete have traveled. They will interact with Alex, Lana, Chloe, Martha, Jonathan and the clone Clark of the alternate universe.)  
  
"Step back!" The deputy officer said to a worried Jonathan Kent as they stood outside the Smallville Diner with the other spectators who watched the hostage situation.  
  
"Chuck," he said to the old schoolmate. "Martha is in there with Whitney and the others. I need to make sure my wife is all right."  
  
"Sorry, Jonathan," The darker haired man in the uniform said. "But we have an abduction in process. We need to maintain the perimeter until the crisis squad gets here from Metropolis."  
  
"For goodness sakes, Chuck," Jonathan said with exasperation. "This is Whitney Fordman for crying out loud. He killed Pete Ross by mistake. He's not some type of hit man for the mob. He must have heard that is father was in the hospital and panicked. His escaping from jail must have been a knee jerk reaction to his worries. He must have tried to come and look in on the old man and walked into this whole thing by mistake."  
  
"I don't know how long he was out of jail, but he did a stupid thing by making a direct line to his wife's place of work," Chuck told him. "Now I have no choice but bring him back to jail."  
  
"Let me go in there and talk to him," Jonathan pleaded his case. "I can talk him into coming out before this whole thing blows up in his face."  
  
"I can't do that, Jonathan," Chuck replied. "Roscoe left me in charge while he went over to the station to call the Metropolis people. I can't let civilians walk in and out of a standoff situation."  
  
"Why not, Chuck?" Jonathan tried to convince him. "I've known those kids in there almost their whole lives. I can talk them into giving up. Think how impressed Roscoe would be if this whole thing were cleared up before he gets back from his duties? I'll tell him it was your idea, and you'll be the hero."  
  
"Really?" Chuck smiled.  
  
"Really," Jonathan smiled back.  
  
Chuck scratched his head. "I don't know, Jonathan."  
  
"Come on, Chuck," he coaxed. "We've known each other since we were in grade school. I am not the reactive type. What would you do if your wife Sharon was in there?"  
  
The deputy thought about it for a while. "Okay, Jonathan, But only until Roscoe gets back. If you're not back by then, we'll have to tear gas the place."  
  
"You have my word that it will be over before you know it," Jonathan patted his shoulders. "You won't be sorry, Chuck."  
  
Turning towards the diner, Jonathan began his slow walk.  
  
"This is Jonathan Kent," he called. "I would like to come in and talk about this."  
  
The door opened slightly as he approached.  
  
"Mr. Kent," Pete ushered him in. "Are we glad to see you."  
  
"Pete?" Jonathan was shocked. "I thought you were dead."  
  
"Yeah, I got a real Mark Twain problem going for me here," Pete remarked. "I think your wife could use some moral support right now."  
  
Jonathan looked across the room and saw the others gathered around Lana.  
  
"A little more to the left, Mrs. Kent," the clone said as he was using his x-ray vision to guide the baby through the birth canal. "You're almost there."  
  
Jonathan ran over and stood behind Martha who had her hands under the covers. "Is she having the baby now?" He asked.  
  
Martha looked up at him with sad eyes. "I'm afraid so," she replied. "I never had to deliver a baby when the mother was so zoned out."  
  
Jonathan looked into his wife's worried eyes and gave her a sweet smile. "I know you can do this, Martha," he told her. "This is what God put you on this Earth to do. This is something only you can do."  
  
She smiled back at him with sweat running down her face. "I love you, Jonathan Kent."  
  
"And I You, Martha Kent," he kissed her forehead.  
  
Martha turned her attention back to the cloned Clark.  
  
"Ease up about seven centimeters with your left hand and move it counter clockwise down the baby's back just below the back of his head and ease up gently," the clone told her with his own eyes fixed on the matter at hand.  
  
  
  
  
  
Lex had his ear pressed against the door listening for footsteps to pass by. After about a half hour, he heard someone approaching from the stairwell. He could tell that steps were lighter than the ones he had heard Alex making each time he walked passed. Lex had tried to work at the doors locks for hours, but had been unsuccessful in his attempt to escape the room. His only chance was if he could get someone to open the door.  
  
"Who's out there?" He yelled and then listens for a response. The footsteps stopped just outside of his room. Whoever was out there, was interested in his call. "Who's there?" He asked again.  
  
The feet shuffled towards the door.  
  
"Please, whoever you are, I am trapped in here and I need to get out," he took the chance to ask for assistance.  
  
"I am well aware of why you are in there and who you truly are, Mr. Luthor," the females voice said.  
  
"Then you know I have to get out of here," Lex agreed. "My friend is in trouble, and I need to save him."  
  
"I am also aware of your friend Clark's predicament," She said back.  
  
"Who are you?" Lex decided to ask.  
  
"I am Doctor Alice Walker," she replied.  
  
Lex was silent for a moment as he leaned his head against the door. "Then you do know what is happening," he said in a softer tone. "You know what they are planning to do with Clark."  
  
Her voice was silent for a moment before she cleared her throat and spoke. "Yes, I do."  
  
Lex found that his new hope for escape had vanished. He took a deep breath and turned around leaning his back to the door this time. "You're going to kill him. Aren't you?"  
  
Alice stared at the door intently for a long while. She could hear Lex as he allowed his body to slump to the floor as he slid down the door. She placed her hand on the wood divider as if to comfort the man behind it. "I am afraid it is the only way to accomplish Mr. Luthor's plans."  
  
Lex pulled his legs close and leaned over his crossed arms that were resting on his knees. "He's only a kid, Doctor. Maybe not an average teen like you or I were, but he's just a kid."  
  
The words had cut a wound in Doctor Walkers already pain filled heart. "I am aware of that," she almost whispered. "Fifteen if I am correct."  
  
"Yeah," Lex wiped his hand across his face. "He's a good kid, too," he explained. "He rushed in here even after knowing it had to be a trap just so he could save me. His father is in the hospital back home where we come from. I don't know how bad he is for sure, but last I heard he had a broken back. Alex also injured his Mom, but Clark left them so he could come and save me. He is always saving me, and now all I can do is listen to his screams from up the hall," he took another deep breath. "He's a good kid."  
  
Doctor Walker hesitated speaking, but then said. "Even if you were able to help him, there is no way out of here. The manor is well guarded."  
  
"That's where I have the advantage," Lex told her. "I have lived in this castle for months, unlike Alex. I know my way around this place. I know all the secret passageways and hidden doors. These old relics were always filled with them."  
  
Lex could sense that he was reaching her. He turned and faced the door again. "Can you help me get out of here?" He asked.  
  
"I don't know," Her voice was understated.  
  
"Clark's life depends on this, Doctor Walker," Lex reminded her. "You know yourself that if I don't get Clark out of here, then Alex will force you to kill him," he paused for emphases, and then added. "Can you live with yourself after killing a teenager?"  
  
The hall was silent for a longtime after that. He had not heard her walk away, so Lex knew she was still outside the door pondering his question. He was getting through to her, and at that moment, he knew she was his only hope of saving Clark and perhaps himself.  
  
It was seven minutes gone by when he heard her pressing the codes on the door's lock. The seven minuets had seemed more like hours to Lex as he waited. Then finally the light from the hall shined into the room again, and Doctor Walker stood over him.  
  
"I am responsible for looking in on Mr. Luthor from time to time," she explained. "I know the codes to most of these rooms."  
  
Lex climbed to his feet and smiled at her brightly. "Thank you," he said.  
  
She stuck her head back into the hall and gestured to him to come forward. "We have to move fast," She told him. "My staff and Mr. Luthor should be up here any moment now to begin the surgery."  
  
The two of them made their way down the hall to Clark's room with silent footsteps. She turned to Lex and whispered. "I have one attendant watching over him. I will need to get him out of there."  
  
"Distract him for a few seconds, and I'll handle it," Lex assured her.  
  
Alice Walker punched the security codes and stepped into the room. The young intern male looked up at her from where he was sitting reading a book.  
  
"How is he?" She asked walking over to Clark's side.  
  
"He's been asleep most of the time," the man said taking a stand next to her and watched Clark. "He asked for water once, but I had to deny it at Mr. Luthor's request."  
  
"Very well," Walker replied. Her words were met with the large sound of an object being crashed against the intern's head. He fell to the floor with a thump.  
  
She turned and saw Lex dropping the broken pieces of the planter. "I always hated that vase," he said. "My father always has had a taste for the gothic."  
  
"We have to move fast," she warned.  
  
"Of course," Lex agreed. "First order of business is this little baby," He picked up the meteor rock from the dresser. "Open the window."  
  
"These window don't open," she returned.  
  
"Of course not," he sighed. "Bullet proof?"  
  
"Not that I am aware."  
  
"Good," he grinned pulling his arm back with the rock in his hand and flung it as hard as he could through the plate of painted over glass. It made a loud crashing sound, and then was gone into the Luthor Mansion Grounds.  
  
"You have a good arm there," she smiled.  
  
"Thanks," he jumped to Clark's side. "I had a lot of practice with hurling objects in my time."  
  
Lex reached for Clark and gently shook him. "Wake up, Clark. It's time to go."  
  
"His skin is already starting to return to its original color," Doctor Walker told him as she unlocked and removed the chains.  
  
Lex sat on the edge and picked Clark up into his arms. He was still weak and incoherent, but he was already starting to come around. The emotions of seeing Clark so helpless sat heavy on Lex. He tried not to let his fear for his friend's health show on his face.  
  
"Lex?" Clark opened his frail eyes.  
  
"Yeah, it's me, Clark," he tried to smile.  
  
"I knew you would come," Clark forced his lips to curl in a grin.  
  
Lex ran his free hand over Clark's shaved head. "They did a real work over on you." he attempted to make light.  
  
Doctor Walker pulled Clark's cloths from a draw and held them up. "We need to get the two of you out of here now," she warned with concern on her face.  
  
"Right," Lex grabbed the garments. "Help me get him dressed."  
  
Clark was able to sit up by the time Lex pulled his shirt on over his head. His body was sore and weak, but it felt good for Clark to be sitting up again and away from the meteor rock's effect. "Are you okay to walk?" Lex asked him.  
  
"I think so," Clark responded as he allowed Lex to pull him up. His legs were stringy and unsteady, but Clark was able to stand almost all the way up to his full height.  
  
"We need to go now," Doctor Walker said as the intern on the floor began to moan awake.  
  
The two of them stood on either side of Clark and steered him out the door.  
  
Once in the hall, they heard the loud smacks of a sole person clapping. All three of them turned to see Alex standing a few feet away with the stun gun. "Very good show," he laughed. "I was routing for the under dogs right up to the end. But did you really think I would not have all these doors wired so that I would be aware when they were opened?"  
  
"You're not going to kill him," Lex warned. "I'll stop you myself if I have to."  
  
"Don't be crazy, Lex," Alex taunted. "Don't you think if I were willing to kill a kid, I wouldn't do the same to a cheap, knock-off of myself?"  
  
Lex stepped in front of Clark who tried to focus his eyesight again. "Then do it, Alex," Lex gritted his teeth. "Just know that if I am going to die, I am taking you to hell with me."  
  
"How dramatic," Alex smiled. "Yet I have never been able to step away from a challenge," he raised the stun gun.  
  
"Get your friend out of here," Alice Walker screamed as she rushed pass Lex and Clark. She made a mad dive at Alex and the two of them were knocked to the floor.  
  
Lex turned to let Clark lean on him, and then lead him down the hall to the master bedroom.  
  
Alex was easily able to push Alice away from him. "Don't be stupid Doctor Walker," he grunted. "Remember you work for me."  
  
"My job does not include murdering children," she snarled back.  
  
Alex tried to get up on his feet, but she dived at him again. She knew she could never over power this younger healthier man, but she hoped to stall him long enough to allow Lex and Clark a safe getaway. Each blow she struck at him only got her closer to her own demise. She was fully aware of this fact, and after several months of being under his thumb, she realized that death was perhaps more preferable.  
  
After a few more minutes in the struggle Alex was able to subdue her. He stood up and reached for the stun gun on the floor. Pulling her frail form from the carpet where he had just beaten her, he held her close to his face.  
  
"I win," he grimaced. "I always win."  
  
Alice Walker looked up at her employer one last time. "But not with my help, this time," she said firmly.  
  
Alex raised the stun gun to her mid-section and pulled the trigger. He released her just as a bolt of electrical currents charged through her body. The force of the charge held her up for a few seconds, but her face was filled with pain and surprise. Slowly her eyes closed for the last time, and her body dropped to the floor as a lifeless corps.  
  
Alex took a few deep breaths and looked down at her. "I never asked you for your help" he bellowed with rage.  
  
Lex was leading Clark through the master bedroom when they heard Alice's scream. They paused for a moment, but did not allow themselves the luxury of looking back.  
  
"Where are we going?" Clark asked standing in the middle of the room. He was slowly regaining his strength, and much to Lex's delight, was able to stand and walk on his own again.  
  
"We have to get out of here, Clark." Lex warned. "This is the only other way out from this floor."  
  
"Your bedroom?" He asked.  
  
"Yeah." Lex replied. "If this is like my house, then it will have a secret passageway in here." He walked over to the large grandfather clock against the far wall.  
  
"That's a clock, Lex."  
  
"It's more than that," he smiled. "I got this idea after reading it in an old comic book." He pulled the clock away to reveal a long stairwell behind it.  
  
"To the Lex Cave," he grinned holding a hand out to direct Clark.  
  
Clark hobbled towards the escape hatch. "This is so lame, Lex. Why didn't you just put a couple of firemen poles behind a book case while you were at it?"  
  
"That a great idea, Clark." Lex agreed. "Only the stairwell and clock came with the house. I just had the idea to look behind it one day."  
  
The two men disappeared behind the clock and closed the entrance just before Alex broke his way into the room. Two guards came running in behind him.  
  
"Where did they go?" He screamed. "Search the entire area including the grounds," he ordered to the hired security. "If they get away, there will be a price to pay for all of you."  
  
  
  
Martha pulled the baby from under the covers and slapped his behind softly. The baby boy let out a healthy screamed that set the entire room at ease. "The baby is perfect," she announced to Lana.  
  
Lana grabbed tighter onto Whitney's arm and laughed as only a relieved mother could. "Our baby is perfect," she told him.  
  
"Did you expect anything less?" He hugged her close.  
  
After cleaning the baby and cutting the cord, Martha wrapped him in a blanket and rested the child on Lana's mid-section. "Mr. And Mrs. Fordman, meet your new baby boy."  
  
"Oh, he's so sweet." Lana cooed. "And he's so tiny."  
  
Whitney gentle pulled the blanket away from his face. "He has your eyes, babe," he told her.  
  
"And your nose," she added.  
  
"I don't know," Pete leaned in for a look. "He kinda looks like Winston Churchill to me."  
  
"All babies look like that," Martha laughed, as Jonathan helped her to her feet. The two of them set themselves off from the group for a few minutes.  
  
"Lana is looking a lot better," he commented to his wife.  
  
"She is," Martha agreed. "The danger is over and the stress from the birth to her body is relieved. I had to make a few miner incisions, but as long as Lana doesn't move very much and we get her to a hospital soon, she should be fine."  
  
"I wish I could say the same for the rest of them," Jonathan told her. "How did Whitney get out of jail? And who's the Pete Ross look alike?"  
  
Martha gave the group a worried look. "They claim that they are not the Whitney and Pete of this world," she told her husband. "They claim to be from an alternate universe."  
  
"Are you kidding?" Jonathan chuckled.  
  
"Well, I would believe just about anything today," Martha remarked. "The boy who looks like the Clark we met at Christmas, and is now claiming not to be him, was able to see through Lana's birth canal and help me guide the baby out safely."  
  
Jonathan, too, eyed the group with a worried look. "Didn't the Clark we met say something about alternate universes when he was here too?"  
  
"It's so hard to remember with everything being so crazy back then, but I think he did mention something like that," she agreed.  
  
"So maybe these kids really are from an alternate Smallville," Jonathan commented. "How else could the Ross boy be back from the grave?"  
  
"Then that would mean that our Whitney is still in Kansas State Prison and those people are out there hunting the wrong kid." Martha reasoned out.  
  
Jonathan looked at his wife. "I think it's time for the sheriff to make a phone call to KSP, and check on Whitney's where-about."  
  
"I think you're right," she agreed again.  
  
Back at the group, Pete and Chloe were huddled around Lana and Whitney admiring the newborn child.  
  
"Does this make you want to have a baby of your own?" Pete asked Chloe.  
  
Her eyebrow shot up as she glanced at him. "When babies are born ready to go off to college, then I'll consider it," she quipped. "Right now the only baby I want to put to bed is my story about this whole day."  
  
"So what are you going to name him?" Pete turned his attention back to Lana.  
  
Lana examined her son and then looked up at Whitney. "I think we will name him after his father," she told him. "Whitney Fordman Junior."  
  
"W. J. Fordman," Pete shortened the name. "The name sounds like this kid is going to stash some cash."  
  
Whitney reached over and touched the child's head. "I think Junior would be more appropriate," he smiled. "Sounds like a good team player name."  
  
He could not help but stare at the small wonder before him. This child was his new saving grace in the world. Whitney could not believe that there was another little person with his nose and mouth. He had never considered having a baby in his life so early on, but looking at the treasure before him, he could not help but wonder how empty his life was before this moment.  
  
Chloe made her way over to the Clark clone that sat alone in another corner booth. He sat silently looking down at his hands. She sat next to him with one of the wet towels.  
  
"We never did clean that dried blood off your face," she said wiping away the stain from where the other universes Lana had hit him with the meteor rock. "After all you've done here today, it would be a shame to let you look like a mess."  
  
He made no efforts to acknowledge her. He simply played with his nervous hands while she washed his face. After a few minutes she tried to talk to him again. "How are you doing, Clark?"  
  
He finally turned his worried eyes to hers. "Mister Luthor is going to be mad at me," he spoke softly. "I was suppose to return to him as soon as I was free of the necklaces effects. Instead, I helped you and your friends."  
  
"You did a wonderful thing, Clark," she told him. "You saved Lana and the baby's life today. You're a hero. I'm sure Luthor will understand that."  
  
"You don't understand," he tried to explain. "I am supposed to help him destroy the real Clark and his friends, not save them."  
  
"I think what you don't understand, is that if you really are Clark's clone, then you have his DNA in you. Not the Luthor's," Chloe brushed his hair back. "You are no more capable of evil things than the real Clark is. I only met him for a few minutes a while back, but he was a nice kind and caring person. Just like you. I don't think Clark is capable of purposely hurting anyone, and neither are you."  
  
"Then the purpose for which I was created is gone," he hung his head. "Mr. Luthor will have me destroyed like he did with the other failed experiments."  
  
"I never met this Lex Luthor guy, but he strikes me as the real spooky scientist on the hill type," she joked. "Don't worry, Clark." Chloe smiled. "We'll figure something out."  
  
  
  
  
  
It was a while before Clark and Lex reached the bottom of the mysterious steps behind the clock, but when they had reached the bottom, there was a large wooden wall to meet them.  
  
"Just great," Lex sighed. "Why would someone go through all the trouble of wiring these passages ways with lights to only have them end at dead ends?"  
  
"Haven't you been down here before?" A weak Clark asked.  
  
"Sure in my mansion, but this is not our Kansas, Clark," Lex reminded him. "In my house, this is just a large empty cavern. But here, it looks like someone has built something down here."  
  
"Maybe your father," Clark said leaning against the wall.  
  
"He was the one who built these caverns into my place when he moved the castle, but why in this world would he board it up here and not in ours?" Lex questioned.  
  
"Then maybe it wasn't him," Clark reasoned out. "It must have been Alex, only he was never told about these passageways."  
  
Lex examined the wall again. "It does make sense. This lumber is not from the original structure like the rest of the castle. So Alex must have built something down here, but what?"  
  
"The only way we will find out is if we get to the other side," Clark concluded. "The master bedroom must be crawling with his guards by now. Going back is not an option. We need to go through the wall."  
  
"But how?" Lex asked.  
  
Clark raised his fist. "I can get us through."  
  
A strange look came over Lex's face. He had almost forgotten about Clark's deception all these months. Again the pain of being lied to by his best friend rested heavy on Lex. Clark could tell his anguish from the look on his face. He put his hand on Lex's shoulder. "I never meant to hurt you, Lex."  
  
Lex pretended not to care. Right now his main concern was to get out alive. He had gone too far with this to be able to go back to Alex. He needed to get out with Clark.  
  
"Are you strong enough?" Lex asked in a monotone voice.  
  
"I think so," Clark looked for any hints of Lex's true emotions, but there were no longer any. "Stand back."  
  
Clark stood straight and took a step back with his left foot and swung his right fist at the solid wall. He was able to make a large hole in the wood frame. Piece by piece he hammered away at the structure until there was a large enough hole for the two men to step through.  
  
Lex stepped in first and Clark leaned over taking deep breaths. His experience had warned Clark to a frail shadow of himself, and this act had not help to regain any ground for his health. After a few seconds, he followed Lex into the brightly lit room.  
  
The two of them stood dumb founded as they saw that the large cavern had been turned into a lab and scores of life size test tube shaped clear canisters line each of the two long walls on either side of them. In the middle of the room were tables, medical equipment and various computers and unidentified tools.  
  
"What is this place?" Clark gasped.  
  
"Looks like a lab of some kind," Lex stepped forward and walked to the center of the room. "But for what?"  
  
Clark followed slowly. He stepped over to one of the large containers and wiped away the frost like substance that seemed to cover it. "Oh, my God," He gasped again.  
  
"What is it?" Lex asked rushing to his side.  
  
Clark rubbed away more of the frost. "It's some type of living tissue," He said looking in.  
  
Lex leaned forward and smiled. "Holy smokes. These are clones. He's trying to grow more clones and these are his incubation units."  
  
"Clones?" Clark stepped back. "More clones." His eyes wondered the room. "Clones of me."  
  
"Most likely," Lex agreed. "This is incredible." He laughed.  
  
Clark turned to him with a shocked look. "You act as if you are enjoying this."  
  
Lex looked back with a smile. "Do you realize the scientific breakthrough they have accomplished here, Clark? Not only have they been able to clone successfully, but they have learned how to mass produce genetic copies."  
  
"This is crazy, Lex," Clark held his arms out at his sides in frustration. "This is not science. These people are playing God here."  
  
"Oh, come on Clark," Lex approached him. "Stop thinking with your Bible and use your brain here. Do you realize the health benefits of having clones? Even if you don't clone a whole person, just to be able to reproduce a transplant organ from the original tissue is mind-boggling. The genetic breakthrough alone is limitless."  
  
"It's not right, Lex," Clark insisted.  
  
"And waiting around for someone to die, is?"  
  
"Okay, I agree that the transplant options would be fantastic, but you know that science won't stop there," Clark continued. "Everyone is just going to keep on trying to make the better human until it gets out of control, and there are no more natural births left at all."  
  
"Your mind is too limited, Clark," Lex said. "This is the beginning of a perfect society."  
  
"One where Alex was already trying to kill me to achieve it," Clark frowned. "How long will it be before we are all willing to kill to get the other person's perceived, perfect genes?"  
  
"I don't see the possibilities of cloning like that," Lex continued to admire the tubes.  
  
"Well, I know how I see the prospects of cloning," Clark said in a low serious tone. "Cloning is the perfect and last example of mankind's own selfishness. Forget that we are trying to play God here, but think about it Lex. Each day we strive to come closer and closer to creating the perfect replica of ourselves, while millions of innocent babies conceived in God's plan for reproduction are destroyed each year by abortion. Maybe they were conceived at the wrong time or immorally, but they were still conceived by the means God meant for it to happen. But instead we destroy God's souls and create our own because we want them to be more like us. That's not science, Lex. That's a selfish desire to perpetuate our selves and thumb our noses at the creator."  
  
Lex looked at him with large eyes. "God, Kent, you have really thought about this."  
  
"We live in a very different world than our parents," he returned. "We need to decide where we stand on some issues before it is too late. It's surprising how much can get pass us because of simple ignorance, Lex. We have to be aware."  
  
"I haven't thought out the whole issue like you have Clark, and we could debate this for hours, but we need to get out of here before we end up in one of these test tubes," Lex changed the subject. "Which way out?"  
  
Clark looked to the other end of the room opposite the side they came in. "That looks like the only other door," he pointed. "I guess that's the way out."  
  
They started walking towards it when the door opened and three guards came rushing in by the same entrance with a grinning Alex behind them. They stopped and he approached Clark and Lex.  
  
"Going somewhere, gentlemen?" He asked holding up his stun gun.  
  
"You can't stop us, Alex," Lex warned. "It's over and we are leaving."  
  
"But I had so many plans for us," Alex grinned. "The party has yet to begin."  
  
Clark looked at Lex. The two men knew what they had to do and each said there intentions with one word each. "Alex," Lex called. "Thugs," was Clark's response.  
  
Before anyone had a change to react, Clark was able to scoop up the three guards and, even at a greatly diminished speed, he rushed them back out into the hall where they had come from.  
  
Alex watched stunned that he had regained his speed so quickly, that he missed the sight of Lex's fist coming at his face. He was knocked off balance and landed on the floor next to a metal table.  
  
"Don't do this, Lex," he called out reaching for his chin. "My offer for the partnership still stands."  
  
"Not in your life time," Lex came around the table and stood over him. "This cat and mouse game ends here." He kicked at Alex's hand holding the stun gun. To his surprise, the gun did not fall from his grasp, but fired off a bolt of electricity that hit one of the tubes shattering it and sending several gallons of liquid all over the floor.  
  
"You fool!" Alex screamed regaining his senses faster than Lex had hoped. "These are the latest productions from the DNA harvest from the kid. These are going to be successful, and I will not let you stop that."  
  
"Oh, yeah?" Lex jumped behind the table just as Alex fired another shot off, this time aimed at him. Again another tube was hit by the wild bolts and began to crack.  
  
"No!" Alex screamed.  
  
"Hey, you're making this too easy," Lex laughed; hoping to anger him enough to throw his judgment off. The plan was working like a charm. "You are doing your own dirty work."  
  
Alex stood to his feet and brushed his white suite off. "Too bad, Lex," He called to the man who was hiding between the tables and tools. "We could have been an ideal team, but you were too attached to the boy to think straight."  
  
"I'm also attached to my own head," Lex jumped up behind him and wrapped one arm around his neck and reached for the gun with his other. "I just wasn't sure how long you would let me keep it after you were finished with me."  
  
"No, you fool," Alex struggled with him. "Don't do this."  
  
Lex forced his hand taking aim at another tube and fired. The tube burst open and green goop flew everywhere.  
  
"Only about twenty more to go," Lex cackled into his ear. "We're making good time."  
  
Alex had managed to reach back with his free hand and grabbed the collar of Lex's shirt. With all his might, he pulled his twin self over his shoulder and flung him to the ground with a great force. Lex had tried to brace himself for landing, but slipped on some of the goop and landed on his left knee with a loud crack. He fell forward with the brunt of the pain, and Alex was released.  
  
"I warned you, Lex," Alex stood over him with the stun gun just before the cylinder that was cracked, but was quickly giving way. " Isn't it fitting that the last face you see should be your own?" He gave an evil grin. "Give my regards to Mother."  
  
"Holy crap," Lex looked up and saw a bolt of electricity escaping the stuns gun's staging point of resistance just as the tube behind Alex burst open. The next two seconds went by as a flash of time as Lex realized that he was no longer standing still, but was moving at a great speed away from the aim of the bolt.  
  
Clark had him flung over his shoulder and was racing for the door. Lex looked back at the surprised look on Alex's face. He was shocked not only by the quick departure of Lex from his line of fire, but he also felt the wet goop splashing against his back.  
  
Clark and Lex both stopped on the dry floor and looked back at what was happening. The electrical currant hit the wet floor where Lex had been helpless just a split second earlier and started a chain reaction of smaller but powerful bolts in the liquid. The electricity traveled all around the room while the original currant followed back to Alex's gun and hand, which was now covered by the same green fluid all over his body. The currents began to surge through his body and he began to rattle around in place from all the charges being tossed all around and through him. The two men watch as he was being fried from the inside out. His flesh quickly melted away, and his hair caught fire and fell to the floor along with the rest of the husk that was only seconds earlier his body.  
  
Clark had to turn his eyes away and could not watch anymore. Lex was transfixed by the sight and watched in complete amazement. Even when his own stomach began to curl on him, he still watched.  
  
After a few seconds, when the sparks began to come closer, Clark pulled Lex out the door. "Come on, Lex," he said leading him down the long hall. "We need to get out of here now, before it's too late."  
  
The three guards Clark had just dispatched along with three others came running at them and stopped at the sight of the sparks flying into the hallway.  
  
"Evacuate the building now!" The bald Clark screamed at them still pulling the dazed Lex behind him. "This whole place is going to blow any second."  
  
The guards immediately turned tail and ran in the other direction. One hit a button on the wall and alarms began to go off all over the compound.  
  
"Thank God," Clark thought out loud. "That should clear the rest of the building."  
  
Lex stopped walking and looked back at the fireworks down the hall. "Haven't you ever heard about Lot's wife?" Clark told him. "You shouldn't look back."  
  
Lex looked at Clark with dead eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry, Lex," Clark came to a decision. "I don't have time for this. We need to get out of here." He picked Lex up in a firemen's carry hold and ran at the top speed he could muster, out of the building.  
  
Once outside, they could see that the flames were already engulfing the rest of the building. Clark placed Lex back on his limping feet and searched around. He could see where some of the attendants were wheeling Lionel Luthor out one of the other doors. He also saw where a guard was carrying the dead body of Doctor Alice Walker.  
  
Lex fell back to the cold ground and nursed his injured knee.  
  
"Are you okay?" Clark leaned over him.  
  
Lex smacked Clark's chest hard as if to push him away. "I broke my kneecap is all," he spoke harshly. "I'm fine."  
  
Clark was surprised by his reaction, but knew they had both just had a jolt to their systems. There was no way to judge each of the reactions. As always, Clark knew he had to take charge for safety sake.  
  
"We need to get out of here before people start asking questions," Clark told Lex. "We need to find Whitney and Pete and get back to our own reality." He reached to help Him up.  
  
"I can do it," Lex pushed him away again. "I can walk."  
  
"All the way to town?" Clark asked. "Let me carry you, and we can run through the fields where no one will see us. I'm no where near my normal speed, but it will be faster than trying to walk there."  
  
Lex gave him the evil eye, but knew that Clark was right. They needed to get back to town, and get away from the Luthor mansion before things got more complicated. He held his hand up and Clark helped him to his feet again. He then scooped him up and disappeared in a semi flash of colors.  
  
  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, back at the Diner, Pete watched cautiously as Jonathan came back to the door. He unlocked it and let him slip in locking it back up again once he was inside. Jonathan approached the rest of them where they were still huddled around Lana.  
  
"Well?" Martha questioned.  
  
"Chuck called the Kansas State Prison, and it seems Whitney Fordman is still safely tucked away behind bars," he told them. "I was able to use that information to convince them that Whitney here just had the miss fortune of looking like our Whitney. Thankfully he never questioned Pete's twin. I told them you were just a bunch of scared kids and no one was held here against their will."  
  
Pete peaked out the blinds. "And that was it. They are leaving?"  
  
"It seems that there was some explosion over at the Luthor place, and they all had to rush over there," he explained. "So you kids are off the hook."  
  
"The explosion must have had something to do with Lex and Clark," Pete told Whitney. "Thank you Mr. Kent," he turned back to Jonathan.  
  
"Lana, honey," Jonathan took her hand. "They will send an ambulance for you as soon as possible. I told them that you were in good hands with Martha." He shot a cute smile at his wife. "They need to check for any emergencies over at the Luthor place before they can spare a truck to bring you to Metropolis General."  
  
"I understand," she smiled. "I am fine so long as I don't move," she said.  
  
Chloe looked back at Pete. "So, Whitney really is up in the pen, and you guys are here," she sorted out. "Is this whole twin universes stuff for real?"  
  
"I told you," Pete answered.  
  
Lana looked at Whitney who was holding the sleeping baby in the booth next to where she sat up. "You are not my Whitney?" she spoke with hurt eyes.  
  
Whitney had never felt his heart sink so low. The realization that the baby in his arms was not really his came back into sharp contrast. "No," he said with a soft voice. "I'm not."  
  
A tear rolled from Lana's Eye.  
  
"But I am sure that your Whitney will be so proud when he learns he has a healthy new son," he smiled at her. "I know I am."  
  
Lana reached up and touched the baby's head lightly. "Thank you for being here for us."  
  
Whitney ran his own finger across the baby's cheek. "I wouldn't have wanted to miss this for the world," he said with a grin. "Thank you."  
  
  
  
  
  
Lex and Clark began wandering the streets of Smallville. The town was very different than the one they were used to, but Clark remembered enough of his last visit here to easily find his way around. Lex had refused to be carried any further, but to his own dismay, he found himself leaning on Clark to take the weight off of his busted knee.  
  
Clark looked at him with concern. "Are you alright?" He asked. "I could try and find a crutch for you to use if you would like."  
  
"I'm fine," Lex replied with a harsh tone.  
  
"I could always rush you up to Metropolis General for a check up," he told his friend.  
  
"I said I am fine," Lex exclaimed. "Besides, if we went to an emergency room right now, they are more than likely to try and admit you before me. You look like you've been through a war, Clark."  
  
"I know," Clark rubbed his own shaved head. "The good thing is the bruises will heal and the hair will grow back. I just have to try and block out all the horrible things they did to me back there," his eyes became dim for a moment. "I know I will have nightmares about this day for years to come, but I can't let them defeat me by giving into the memories."  
  
Lex wanted to say something. Anything that would help to calm his young friend's pain, but he was dealing with his own inner turmoil.  
  
"How are you holding up?" Clark asked.  
  
Lex looked up at him. "I just saw myself die a horrible death, Clark. I feel like a day at the beach."  
  
Clark rolled his eyes at his sarcasm. "I'm sorry Lex. We both have had a terrible experience today, but we can't let it eat away at us. We need to find a way to move pass this."  
  
"We need to find a way home, Clark," Lex shot. "So let's just concentrate on finding the jock and your friend, and return to Level three so we can get home."  
  
Clark had never seen Lex so at odds with him before. He decided to leave the matter alone and gave him a quick smile. "Sure, Lex," he said.  
  
Lex did a complete three sixty spinning on his good leg. "So where do we start our search in this happy little haven?" He asked. "How can we even be sure that they haven't gone back home already?"  
  
"Because the clone hasn't showed up yet," Clark reminded. "He must still be with Pete and Whitney. If they didn't have him under their control, he would have found a way back to Alex. Besides, Whitney is too stupid to do the smart thing and high tail it back to our world."  
  
"Give the kid a break," Lex commented. "He is a natural blond and a jock. How many more strikes could one person have against an IQ?"  
  
Clark saw the glint in Lex's eye as he joked about Whitney. Perhaps it was not too late for him after all.  
  
"Over there," Clark pointed towards the diner. "There seems to be a crowd dispersing from in front of the restaurant where Lana works."  
  
"Lana and Whitney would be a good place to start," Lex deduced. "Let's check it out."  
  
  
  
  
  
Jonathan came out of the kitchen in the diner and walked over to the group. "I just spoke with your boss Mr. McKenzie on his cell phone. He's still up in Metropolis with his wife for her doctor's appointment. He said to go ahead and lock up when we leave, and he'll open the place up when he gets here. He also told me to congratulate you on your new son."  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Kent," Lana smiled at him. "I don't know what I would do with out you. All of you," She looked around.  
  
Pete tapped Whitney on the arm. He was still holding the baby and enjoying the moment. "We need to get going, Whitney," he told him. "Whatever happened over at Lex's mansion was big, so we need to see if we can find Clark and Lex in the mess."  
  
"Sure, Pete," Whitney could not take his eyes off the baby. "I just want to sit here for a few more minutes."  
  
The bell rang over the door when Lex and Clark entered.  
  
"I'm sorry, but we are not open right now," Chloe started as she looked up. "Clark?"  
  
Lex rested against the seat back as Clark gave her his best smile. "Chloe, you remember."  
  
"How could I forget our Christmas visitor?" She smiled back. "What happen to your hair?"  
  
"Oh," he ran his hand over it again. "I thought I would try the Luthor look. It's the latest craze."  
  
"Clark," Pete ran up to his friend. "You guys made it."  
  
"Almost in one piece," he joked again. "So I see you all met," He looked around.  
  
Martha walked up to him. "How have you been?" She asked softly.  
  
"Not bad until the last twenty-four hours," His heart was sinking at the sight of the woman who should be his mother. She was still concerned and caring towards him. "Hey, I know this wasn't planned, but I want to apologize for the things I did the last time I was here."  
  
She put her hand on his arm. "I know," she smiled sweetly. "I still find it hard to believe when you said you were our son from an alternate universe, but I have just spent the day with a boy who is locked up in a prison several miles away, and another one who should be dead. It all seems to be a little too revealing."  
  
"Well, I'm still sorry I upset you so much," he repeated.  
  
She pulled him close and hugged him. "I may not be your mother, but if I were, I would still be proud of you."  
  
Jonathan walked up behind his wife. "I heard about why you came back here, Clark. From the looks of it, you had a rough time saving your friend," he held out his hand. "I'm proud of you too, son."  
  
Clark skipped the hand and hugged his alternate father. He had wanted to hug him for a while now, but was not sure he would ever be able to do so again with his father. "Thanks, Pa. Lex and I saved each other."  
  
Lex made his way over to the table where the clone was sitting. He sat across from him while he nursed the soda on the table.  
  
"Where is the necklace?" Lex asked him.  
  
"Chloe got rid of it," he said. "I think Pete has it in his pocket."  
  
"And you didn't try to run?" Lex was surprise. "You are still here?"  
  
The clone looked up. "I can't go back there, sir," he spoke with anguish. "Mr. Luthor created me to hurt people, and I can't do that anymore."  
  
Lex gave him a short grin. "Looks like you have a little more of Clark in you than you thought."  
  
"Did Mr. Luthor say anything about me while you were with him?" The clone asked.  
  
"I think in his own warped way, Alex missed you," Lex leaned forward. "But you don't have to worry about him any longer. Alex is dead," the words soured in Lex's mouth. He tried to think of Alex as another person, and not this world's version of him.  
  
"Dead?" The younger man questioned.  
  
"He's gone, kid," Lex explained. "He was destroyed in the fire, and he's not coming back."  
  
The clone lowered his head to the table and leaned on his forearms. He then began to cry.  
  
Lex was surprised by this display. Alex had kept the young man a prisoner and used him as a slave, and still he cried at the thought of not seeing him ever again.  
  
Clark made his way over to where Lana was sitting with Whitney and the baby.  
  
"The baby is beautiful just like his mother," Clark smiled.  
  
Whitney looked up at him with an evil stare. "Still trying to pick up my girl," he thought to himself.  
  
"Thank you," Lana replied to Clark. "Thanks to Martha and your friends."  
  
"It was the other Clark," Chloe added. "He helped guide Martha through the birthing process with his super vision. Or whatever he called it."  
  
"X-ray," Whitney corrected. "I have to admit, Kent. The other 'you' is as much a goody two shoes as you. He volunteered to help and never tried to escape after we removed the rock."  
  
Clark looked back at the clone that was directing his eyes at the other table.  
  
"For a man-made creation, he turned out to be a really good guy," Chloe added.  
  
"What are we going to do with him now?" Pete asked.  
  
"Alex is gone, so he has nowhere to go," Clark explained. "And we can't take him back with us."  
  
"Then he has to stay here," Chloe's eyes lit up.  
  
"It's your call, Clark," Pete said. "The rest of us already know where our doubles are. This problem belongs to you."  
  
"I know," Clark said as he walked back.  
  
Clark stopped at the table where the clone and Lex were sitting. "Can I speak with you for a minute?" He asked.  
  
"Sure," the clone sniffled.  
  
Lex stood up and Clark took his seat. "I told him about Alex," he explained.  
  
"Thanks," Clark gave Lex a quick smile.  
  
"This is so strange," Clark started. "I mean Lex has been around his double the whole day, and I don't know how he did it. Now here we are face to face. I didn't have to think about it when he were pounding each other back at the farm, but now it's so real."  
  
"I'm sorry I hurt you," the clone spoke.  
  
"I know you were following orders," Clark kept looking away with unease.  
  
"Alex is gone," the clone spoke with a boyish innocence.  
  
"Yeah, I know that, too," Clark said.  
  
"I have nowhere to go," the clone sighed. "No one but him even knew I existed. I don't belong anywhere anymore."  
  
"Listen," Clark interrupted the thought. "I am not comfortable with the whole clone thing you got going on. I mean, forget that you come from my own DNA; it's just the idea of man made life that gets to me. I mean you look and act human and all, but inside you are not. You see, only God can create a human soul, and spirit. So I have to wonder where yours have come from. If you have a soul in you, then I don't think that God created it. So now I have to wonder where did your spirit come from? The only spirits around that would go against God's plan of the actually birth creation are working for the other side. So I always figured that if a clone has a spirit, then it is not coming from heavenly places."  
  
"You think I am a demon?" The clone asked.  
  
"I don't know," Clark sighed. "I mean you seem to be a legitimate copy of me like all the other people are of the people in my world. So I don't know what to think, other than to be sure that cloning is wrong."  
  
"There is one other possibility," the clone spoke up. "Perhaps I was suppose to be the Clark of this world all along, and somehow, God made sure my soul found it's way into this body. The perfect copy of your body and soul."  
  
"Again, I don't know," repeated Clark. "All I do know is that you are here, and I will not destroy you. I have to trust that God has a plan for you being here. So the only question is what to do with you so you can go on and live a normal life."  
  
Clark turned around as he was thinking and noticed Jonathan and Martha Kent admiring the baby. Jonathan held Martha in his arms and she seemed as if she were about to cry. It took a few seconds, and then the idea sunk in. "It's perfect," he said with a smile.  
  
"I'll be right back," he told the clone and then went over to the Kents.  
  
Martha gave Clark a smile when he approached. "Hi, again," he spoke sheepishly. "Could I talk to you for a minute?"  
  
"What is it, Clark?" Jonathan asked.  
  
"It's about the clone over there," he gestured to him by nodding his head.  
  
"He really is a clone?" Martha asked.  
  
"I'm afraid so," Clark replied. "It seems Alex Luthor got a hold of some of my DNA when I was here last, and he created a super human version of me to use as his slave or something."  
  
"The poor boy," Martha said.  
  
"Yeah, and now Alex is dead," Clark explained much to their surprise. "He accidentally blew himself up at the mansion a little while ago."  
  
"How?" Jonathan asked.  
  
"He tried to kill us, but got sneered in his own trap," Lex said joining the conversation. "So what I think Clark is trying to tell you is that this version of him is now homeless and alone."  
  
"Are you asking us what I think you are asking us to do?" Jonathan questioned again.  
  
Clark nodded his head. "Yes, sir. I know I upset you when I was here the last time and told you this, but in the reality where we come from, you are my adopted parents," he took a deep breath. "No one in my world knows this but you, and now Lex, but I am not from Earth. At least I don't think so."  
  
"Aliens?" Martha gasped.  
  
"Yeah, I guess so," Clark agreed. "About twelve years ago our Smallville was hit by a meteor shower. Shortly after, the two of you found me in a cornfield near a small rocket ship. As you know, you always wanted a child, so you took me in as your son. You raised me to be who I am today."  
  
Lex could not hide the hurt expression from his face. These lies had been going on for the entire time he knew Clark, and he considered the young man to be his best friend. He was just like a little brother. Now he learned not only of the lies, but Clark was also the reason for his hair lost and alienation from his father.  
  
"I know it's presumptuous of me, but I think you would be a good influence on Clark," Clark said. "He looks like a teenager, but inside he is a scared little boy who needs a home."  
  
"I don't know," Jonathan scratched his head and glanced over at the clone that was talking to Chloe. "How are we going to get this pass the authorities?"  
  
"There is a man by the name of Clyde Johnson," Lex spoke up. "He lives on Chapel Street in Metropolis. Tell him Lex sent you and let him know what you need. Tell him no questions asked. I believe even in this world he and I knew each other a few years back."  
  
"Could we have a few minutes?" Jonathan asked the two men. "Martha and I need to discuss this,"  
  
"Sure," Clark smiled and he and Lex walked away.  
  
"Are you feeling any better?" Chloe asked the clone.  
  
"I feel fine physically," he told her. "I just don't know what I will do next."  
  
Chloe leaned across the table and held his hands. "If it helps," she started. "What you did for Lana and the baby today was real sweet. I have to admit that the thought of you with super powers freaks me out, but I think what ever happens, you and I will be friends for a very long time to come."  
  
The Clark Clone took her hands in his and gave here a big toothy grin. "Thank you Chloe. I think you and I will be friends for a very long time, too."  
  
Chloe blushed and looked away.  
  
"You have a pretty smile," he told her.  
  
Again she blushed and looked away.  
  
Clark walked over to where Pete and Whitney were still sitting with Lana. "We need to get a move on guys," he told them. "It's time to go home."  
  
"Sure," Pete stood up. "I can't wait to get out of a place where everyone thinks I'm dead."  
  
Clark gave him a smile, but could tell that he was very disturbed by what he had learned here. He then turned to Whitney who still had the baby. "Time to go, Whitney."  
  
He looked up with a lost expression in his eyes. "Give me a minute, huh, Clark?"  
  
"Sure," Clark said as he and Pete walked away.  
  
Pete and Clark joined Martha and Jonathan at Chloe and the clone's table. He listened as Jonathan spoke to the twin Clark.  
  
"Clark," he spoke hesitantly. "I know that this whole day has been a shock to all our systems, but Martha and I were talking about something. It seems Clark and Lex came up with an idea, and we think it is a good one."  
  
The clone gave them a puzzled look.  
  
"We want you to come live with us," Martha interjected. "We know now that our Lex Luthor, or Alex as they have been calling him, is gone and you no longer have a place to live. So Jonathan and I would like it if you would come and stay with us, if only on a trial basis."  
  
"You really mean it?" He smiled.  
  
"Yes," they both smiled back. "If we were able to turn out such a fine young man as Clark in his world, once, then we are willing to give it a try here."  
  
"Thank you," he jumped up and hugged them. "I promise you won't be sorry."  
  
Martha and Jonathan hugged their new son back. Clark watched in delight. Everything was now going to be as it should have been.  
  
Lex backed away from the group on his soar knee and watched from a few feet away. He marveled at the thought of the Kents being a happy nuclear family again even in this new reality; While the Luthors were as dysfunctional a family as ever.  
  
After a few minutes Clark broke away and returned to Lex's side. "Well, I think our work here is finished," he smiled.  
  
His glee was met by Lex's disturbed face.  
  
"What's wrong, Lex?"  
  
"Nothing," he said with a grimace. "My knee is just killing me. Let's just go home."  
  
A siren could be heard approaching.  
  
"That must be Lana's ride," Jonathan announced He walked over to Whitney and Lana. "I hate to break this up, but I think it's best if you four guys were gone when the authorities got here. I was already able to explain away a second Whitney, but two Clarks and a dead Pete and a presumed dead Lex are a little much."  
  
"He's right. It's time guys." Clark agreed.  
  
Martha went up to Clark and hugged him. "Thank you for everything," she said.  
  
"No, thank you," He smiled down at her. "Ma."  
  
She laughed and hugged him again.  
  
"Hey," Chloe met Pete at the door. "For what it was worth," she told him. "I was glad to be able to see my best friend again."  
  
Pete gave her a big bear hug. "The pleasure was all mine, Chloe,"  
  
She pulled away from him yet held his arms. "I know this is kinda stupid," she paused. "But I never had the chance to tell my Pete this before he died." She leaned in and kissed his cheek. "You are the best friend I ever had Pete Ross. I will miss you for the rest of my life. And I love you."  
  
Pete had to fight off a tear as he gave her one last hug. "I know Pete loved you too, Chloe." He then stepped out before he could say any more.  
  
Clark walked over and shook his clone's hand. "The Kents are good people," he told him. "They will take good care of you. So you be good to them. And always remember that no one can know that Clark Kent is a clone or has super powers."  
  
"I understand," the clone smiled back. "Thank you for not destroying me."  
  
Clark shook at that thought. "It wasn't right for Lex to play God by creating you, but it also wouldn't be right for me to play God and destroy you. Live up to my prayers for you."  
  
"I will." The Clark clone smiled back at himself.  
  
Chloe came over and wrapped her arms around the twin. "I'll keep him in line," She joked.  
  
Clark smiled to see them all so happy.  
  
Lex slipped out the door with out saying a word to anyone. He realized again that he was an outside in this world as much as he was in his.  
  
Clark walked over to where Whitney was then standing with the baby in his arms. "It's time to go," he said softly.  
  
Whitney looked at him and then at the child again. "Look at him, Clark," he spoke through the lump in his throat. "He is absolutely the most perfect thing I have ever seen."  
  
"I know," Clark gently agreed. He could see that this trip had not been easy on any of them. Each of them would pay the price in their own way. His job was now to get everyone home before any more damage was done. "The sirens are getting closer," he told Whitney. "We need to leave."  
  
Whitney gave him a look of utter disgust. "This is my son, man," he sniffed back a tear. "How am I supposed to leave him?"  
  
Clark's heart was breaking along with Whitney's. He knew he had to tear the two apart. "Please, Whitney." He, too, fought back a lump in his throat. "Don't make this any harder than it has to be."  
  
Whitney's chest began to heave up and down as the tears flowed from his eyes. "My son," He repeated.  
  
Clark put his hands on Whitney's arms. "He's not your son, Whitney," The words hurt just as much coming out of his mouth as they did to Whitney's ears. "The babies father is up in the Metropolis prison. Whitney Fordman of this world is the baby's father. Not you." His words were firm but gentle.  
  
The disgust in Whitney's eyes was gone, and all that remained was hurt. After all he himself had been through today, Clark knew he had to be the strong one here. He placed his hand on the back of Whitney's neck like his father had done to him a hundred times in moments of distress. "Please, Whitney," he whispered into his ear. "You have to let the baby go. We need to get home."  
  
After a few seconds, Whitney pulled away from him. He gave Clark one last glance. Then with out a word, he turned to Lana and handed her the baby boy. He kissed them both on the forehead one more time and then slowly walked away. They all watched silently as Whitney's heart broke while leaving a trail of crushed dreams behind him. Once he stepped out the door, Whitney Fordman Junior was out of his life forever.  
  
  
  
Out on the sidewalk, Whitney allowed Lex to lean his weight against him so he could walk with his bad knee. Pete walked silently with his head hung low. No one said a word as they made there way back to the plant and Level Three. Clark watched as he trailed behind. They had perhaps left this world behind a little better off, but each of them would feel the effects of it for a long time to come.  
  
Clark's mind wandered as they walked. Would Whiney ever get pass the pain of having to give up a child he had instantaneously fallen in love with? Would Pete be able to get pass the knowledge of his own death at Whitney's hands? Would Lex ever be able to forgive him for all the lies and deceit going on for all the time they had known each other? Then there were the people he was returning to. He ignored the fact that Chloe had confessed her love for him when last they saw each other, but she had taken it back for fear of his reaction. He chose not to make mention of it, but he knew one day he would have to. What about Lana who seemed to be coming around to his way of thinking? She saw Chloe's admittance of love. Would she now not stand in her friend's way and shy away from him again? What about the way she now looked at him with fear in her eyes after the clone attacked her? His own body ached at the beating it had taken that day, but his biggest fear was for his parents. The evil Lex and the clone too had attacked them. Martha's wrist was sure to heal, but what of the trauma of being held captive by that mad man? She had to watch as Jonathan was thrown across the room breaking his back. The effect of that memory had to be heavy on her mind. And then there was Jonathan Kent. He was now going to be crippled for the rest of his life. His dreams were shattered at that instant as easily as his back. The Kent family's hope and dreams for the future were all gone including Clark's. His dreams of a college education were all but destroyed.  
  
Clark hated himself for having to think of these things, but like the alternate reality, this was the new world they would all have to live in; a new world where Smallville would never be the same again.  
  
To Be Concluded....In Part Three: Home Again  
  
To Be Continued 


	7. Chapter 7

Something Wicked This Way Comes: Part Three  
  
Home Again.  
  
Chapter Seven  
  
  
  
It all started with a nightmare. On Christmas Eve, after a hard day, Clark made a silent wish that lead to a dream. He woke up in a world where his rocket ship never landed in Smallville. No one knew who he was, and the history of the tiny town was changed forever. The experience had proven dangerous and heartbreaking. He woke up again, believing that the entire event was over, but he was wrong. It was no dream, but an alternate universe and the Lex Luthor he met on the other side learned of his secrets and vowed to use them for his own purposes. He vowed he would find Clark even after he had disappeared, and Lex has always been a man of his word.  
  
  
  
Two weeks ago Clark's nightmare came visiting his Smallville, and his life would never be the same again.  
  
  
  
  
  
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The early afternoon light shined through the window as Clark looked out at the parking lot below his father's hospital room. He had been here a few minutes already. Jonathan Kent was asleep on the bed a few feet away in the dank, little, cubical-shaped quarters as he had been for hours at time these days. A cast covered his body with steel rods protruding from his forehead to keep his head from moving. The doctors kept Jonathan on a lot of medication to maintain the pain from his broken back, and finding him at a wakened moment had become next to impossible.  
  
Clark listened to the rhythmic breathing of his father as he thought about the event from the last two weeks. Looking out the window, the city of Metropolis as well as Smallville still seemed very much the same, but the world around the Kents and their friends had changed forever. Clark ran his hand over his recently shaved head where the stubbles of hair had begun to grow back in. This only reminded him of all the pain that was now a daily part of his life. Everything and everyone around him had been hurt by the visit of an evil Lex Luthor from an alternate dimension. That Lex was now gone and defeated, but the price to win the battle had cost just about everything in Clark's life.  
  
"Clark?" The soft voice of Jonathan woke him from his dazed stare.  
  
"Dad," Clark stood up from the windowsill and walked over to his father's bed. "I'm right here."  
  
Jonathan's eyes darted around the room. "Where is your mother?" He asked.  
  
"She decided to use the time I was here with you to run some errands," Clark told him. "She told me you were expecting me. She'll be back soon."  
  
"Of course," Jonathan tried to smile at his son. "It's good to see you, son. You haven't been around much these past few days."  
  
"I've been taking care of the farm while you were laid up," Clark explained. "I was able to get myself put on half days at school so I could help out more at home."  
  
"What about your studies?" Jonathan gave a creased brow.  
  
"I have it covered," He smiled. "Luckily I read as fast as I run. I never really had a problem with my studies. I can read anything once and it's locked away in my memory. So school is under control. I've been doing all the chores around the farm at top speed, so I am able to keep up with the every day stuff. The cows are not thrilled with the 'Wham, Bam, Thank You, Ma'am' treatment, but they'll adjust."  
  
Jonathan giggled for the first time in weeks at Clark's joke. "Don't make me laugh, son," He warned. "The movement only hurts more."  
  
"Sorry, Dad."  
  
"Don't be," Jonathan smiled. "It's nice to see you still have your sense of humor about these things. Things have been really rough on you, son."  
  
"It's not too bad, Dad," Clark lied. "I still have you and Mom, and the evil Lex is gone forever. Things can only get better from here."  
  
"You know that I love you, son, right?" Jonathan asked. "I know I might look a little frail right now, but you don't need to put on a brave face for me. I have always been able to tell when you are having a hard time with things. Even with your new cue ball look, I can still read your pain, Clark." His voice was still raspy and his breaths between words were heavy. "I'm your father and you can talk to me when you need to. We are family and we are there for each other. So be honest with me and tell me what troubling you, son."  
  
Clark tried to look away for a second. "I wouldn't know where to start, Dad."  
  
"Please son, if not for yourself, then open up for me," Jonathan pleaded. "I hate feeling so helpless in this bed while you and your mother are killing yourselves trying to make the best of this mess. I can't help you out side of this room, but please let me at least be a sounding board when you are in pain."  
  
Clark saw the sincerity in his father's eyes. He didn't want to burden this once vital man, but perhaps unloading a little of the pain would help the two of them. "It's complicated, Dad," He warned.  
  
"Life usually is, Clark," Jonathan replied. "Has something happened since you came home from the other realm, or whatever it was?"  
  
"An alternate universe would be the best description, Dad," Clark concluded. "It's not so much what has happened, as it is what hasn't happened. Everything has been so weird since then. It's like all my friends are avoiding me and each other for the most part."  
  
"Pete Ross has been really depressed since he got back, but he won't talk about it," Clark continued. "He found out that Whitney had killed his alternate when he was on the other side, and I think it has weird-ed him out more than he will admit. He just seems to be in a fog. From what little Chloe is telling me, he's not talking to her either. I think she's a little embarrassed because before I left for the other side, she told me she loved me, but then took it back; sorta. I always knew she had feelings for me, but she was able to operate past them as long as she thought I didn't know. To tell you the truth, it was always easier to not think about it as long as she didn't confirm them." Clark lowered his head as he sat on the edge of the bed. "She also said it in front of Lana, and she's another problem."  
  
"Lana is jealous?" Jonathan asked.  
  
"I'm not sure," Clark answered. "I can't talk to her long enough to decide. The clone spooked her when he chased her while they were on this side. Now I can see a twinge of fear in her eyes every time I walk into a room, and she just tries to avoid me all together when I approach her."  
  
"Is Whitney Fordman still with her?"  
  
"Another unsolved mystery, Dad," Clark added. "He hasn't hardly made any classes since school's been back in session from vacation. He seems even moodier than normal and doesn't want to associate with any of his friends."  
  
"Do you think it had something to do with the alternate Lana and Whitney's baby he saw being delivered?" Jonathan asked.  
  
"What else could it be, Dad?" Clark sighed. "I nearly had to pull him away from his son. He was so taken in by the baby that he didn't want to leave. I think with facing all this stuff about his father, Whitney was able to find the love he has been lacking in the baby."  
  
"It's hard for a man to walk away from his child, Clark," Jonathan added with a slight groan of pain. "Even though Whitney had no real connections to the child, for all intended purposes, that baby boy was his son. It's hard for a man to shake that responsibility."  
  
"I know," Clark agreed. "Maybe if Lionel Luthor had been able to show any of his parental feelings towards Lex on either side of the dimensional divide, most of this could have been avoided."  
  
"Is Lex also being one of your illusive friends right now?" Jonathan questioned. "I've noticed that you haven't spoken much about him lately."  
  
"I think he's being the worst, Dad," Clark sighed again. "He's not even being polite about avoiding me. He won't answer any of my phone calls, and he has his staff tell me he's not home even when he knows I can look through the walls and see him."  
  
"Lex is also dealing with a lot of guilt out of all of this, son," Jonathan said. "He knows that it was his alternate self who caused all of this trouble. Starting with putting me in this bed. Lex knows everyone has always had a low opinion of him, and now what everyone was afraid he would do was done by his twin."  
  
"Evil twin, Dad."  
  
"Clark, this is not a soap opera. Whatever the alternate was capable of, most likely Lex is capable of it also. His trigger has just not been fired yet."  
  
"Well, since everyone seems to have that attitude towards him now, it's no wonder why he's avoiding us," Clark shrugged. "I'm sure watching yourself die before your own eyes has to be a little hard on a guy too. Lex was mad at me up to that point, but he still saved me. Then, when Alex died, something snapped in his head, and he was suddenly embracing his dark side."  
  
"Lex has always been a little dark, Clark," Jonathan reminded. "He was just a little more covert about it before. That Alex guy helped to show Lex his worst side and he saw where all that evil would get him. No one wants to see himself in defeat. Much less in the moment of a horrible death."  
  
"I feel like I need to help, Dad," Clark's voice began to crack. "I want to help all of them and I can't. Even with all my powers and abilities, you are still laying here with a broken back. It's not right. This should have never happen."  
  
Jonathan slid his hand across the sheet and placed it over Clark's. "We sometimes have to deal with the worst life has to offer, Clark. We can't give up. We have to make the best of it and move forward."  
  
Clark allowed his head to slide forward until it was resting on his father's cast covered chest. "How do I move forward Dad?" He asked. "How will things ever be normal again after this?"  
  
"I don't know, son," Jonathan struggled to look down. "All I can tell you is to have faith, and that I am proud of you. You are being strong through a situation that no young man your age should have to face."  
  
Clark took his father's hand and raised it to his face. He knew Jonathan was unable to move so freely like he had before, and he need to feel his father's touch. "I love you, Pa," he said holding back his tears.  
  
Jonathan wiggled his fingers across Clark's cheek in the only movement he could perform at the time. "And I love you so very much, son. Don't you ever forget that."  
  
  
  
Lana Lang sat on one of the outdoor lunch tables with her brown bag watching all the other high school students walking by. Having lunches alone had become a regular part of her day since returning to school. Before vacation, she would usually have her meals with Whitney or her cheerleader friends, But Whitney was hardly ever in school any more, and the pointless girl talk between her former Cheerleading squad no longer held any interest for her.  
  
She nibbled on the remainder of her carrot sticks that Aunt Nell had backed in her lunch, and tried to remember simpler and better days. Her mind drifted back to a time only two weeks earlier when she was torn inside between the two men in her life. Whitney was her boyfriend and should have been the love of her life, but she kept finding herself involved with closer relationships with her friend, Clark. Whitney was always the healthy, handsome, jock boyfriend who she wore like a trophy, while Clark was the sensitive, caring, and cute boy next door. These two were opposites in every way right down to appearances, yet she found herself attractive to both of them. Surprisingly, the life of a simple small town girl had become big city complicated. The only thing she thought she knew for sure was that things could not get any worse, and then they did.  
  
A clone of Clark Kent showed up in Smallville. He was under the influence of the evil Lex Luthor and was told to capture her when she was able to make her escape. Lana had always thought of Clark as a good friend, but the memory of being chased by him and her having to smash a rock against his head to save her own life, was still burning in her mind. Lana had been attacked for what seemed a hundred times by the so called 'Freaks of the Week', but being attacked by her best friend was something she could not erase from her thoughts. Perhaps it was simply the one attack of the many that pushed her over the edge, but things had changed for her. Even though she knew it was not the real Clark who attacked her, she still could not fight off or hide the uneasy feeling she had when he was around. She wanted to be comfortable with him again, but could not ease her own nerves enough. Her friend Clark needed her at a time when he was at his lowest, but she could not bring herself to be there for him.  
  
Whitney was another problem. He had gone through the portal to the 'other side' of the reality divide, and had come out a completely different man. If they had not assured her that this was her Whitney, she would have thought it were an alternate who had returned in his stead. He was suddenly preoccupied in thought. She had already gone through this when his father's health problems first started, but she was sure they had worked out the communication difficulties. Then he went to help Clark, and he came back different. He could barely look her in the eyes any longer, and he never came around anymore. He missed four out of the five school days they had been back, and his football buddies had no idea where he was now spending his time. Whitney was becoming an island onto him self.  
  
She had asked him what had happened on the other side, but he would never give her a straight answer. Even after she approached Pete Ross with the same inquiries, he, too, chose not to disclose what had happened. The world around her had found a way to get worse.  
  
Lana was deep in thought, and she didn't hear as someone approached her and slid onto the bench besides her. "Hey, babe," the voice said.  
  
Lana awoke from her daze and looked up. "Whitney?" She questioned. "What are you doing here? They told me you weren't in any of your morning classes."  
  
"I know. I ditched," he said with a big smile. "I wasn't planning on coming, but I had to see you."  
  
She gave him a worried look. "Is everything alright?" She asked. "Is something wrong?"  
  
"No," He tried to calm her with his white smile. "Everything is great, and I know how to make it better."  
  
"Coming back to school and maybe visiting me again might make things better," She replied.  
  
"Even better than that, babe," he kept flashing her, his bright silly grin. "I know I've been moping around these last few weeks, but I know what will help beat the blues. I finally figured out what was missing in my life."  
  
"That's great, Whitney," she sounded relieved and allowed herself to smile again. "What is it?"  
  
"You, babe," he took her hands and grinned even bigger. "I need you in my life."  
  
"I am in your life, Whitney," she agreed. "I always have been."  
  
"Not as my girlfriend, Lana," he told her. "I want you to be my wife."  
  
Lana's jaw dropped. "What?"  
  
"It's perfect, Lana. I love you and you love me," he explained. "We belong together and we always have. We both know how our lives are going to end up, so why wait any longer?"  
  
"I don't understand where this is coming from," she told him. "You haven't been around in almost two weeks without even the consideration of a phone call, and now you show up asking me to marry you."  
  
"Because I finally figured it out," he said with a worried tone. "We belong together. I want us to be with each other day and night. Live our lives side by side." He leaned in. "And I want us to start a family."  
  
Lana looked deeply onto his eyes. "What happen to you when you were on the other side?" She asked touching his face. "Why are you so concerned with getting married so soon?"  
  
"I love you, Lana," his eyes began to plead. "When I went to that other world, I saw how much I really did. I saw how happy we could be together and apart. A lot of mistakes have been made on either side, but I know what was done right. We belong to together. You, me and our children."  
  
"Children?" She backed away. "Where did that come from? I am only a high school freshman, Whitney. I would like to finish high school and go to college before I settle down with kids."  
  
"You can still go to high school and college," he told her. "We could get a baby-sitter."  
  
Again Lana felt like she did not know this man anymore.  
  
"We belong together, Lana. We both know that," he kept on pushing.  
  
"What about football?" She asked.  
  
"I won't have time," he said. "I need to drop out of school and get a job to support my family. I'll take night classes to finish high school, but I don't need college. My only shot was a scholarship, but now that my dad wants me to run the store for him, I can take over full time without worrying about my football career."  
  
"But football was your dream. You hate the store," she reminded him.  
  
"I hate not having you as my wife," he said back. "I have this all worked out, Lana. I know what I want, and I promise you I will give you the home you always wished you could have. With a mother and a father and happy healthy children. So let me ask you again."  
  
Whitney slid off the bench and knelt on one knee. "Lana Lang, will you be my wife?"  
  
Lana had dreamed of this moment for years, and some how she had never pictured it in the courtyard of her high school during a lunch break. In her mind, romantic horse carriage rides; flowers and romantic candle lit dinners always seemed to be present.  
  
"I don't know," she blushed. "This is all so sudden."  
  
"I know," he agreed. "But why wait. Marry me, Lana."  
  
She took his face in her hands. "I do love you, Whitney," she said. "But I don't know if this is right."  
  
"Don't say no," he took her hands stopping her words before another could be spoken. "At least think about it. Sleep on it."  
  
Lana's heart and mind were at total war by that point. Her head kept telling her that it was too early and this was not right, but her heart was telling her that she did love this man, or so she believed. He was her future and could provide the life she always wanted: A home with love, security and happily ever after.  
  
"Please, Lana," he kissed her hand. "Think about it."  
  
She waited a few seconds before answering. "Okay, Whitney," she smiled. "I will think about it."  
  
He leaned in and kissed her tenderly. "I won't let you down, babe."  
  
A small crowd had gathered around and erupted in applause when they kissed. Lana and Whitney both turned red as they noticed they were the center of attention.  
  
"Prom queen marries quarterback," a voice in the group of spectators announced. "Wow, I didn't see that coming."  
  
They looked up and saw Chloe Sullivan walking up to them. "Let me be the first to congratulate you and get the scoop for the Torch."  
  
"Oh, no. The paparazzi already," Lana joked. "Hi, Chloe."  
  
"So, did I witness what I think I just did?" Chloe asked sitting across the table from them.  
  
"Sorta," Lana blushed again. "Whitney asked me to marry him, and I said I would think about it."  
  
"Freshmen weddings are always a must on the high school itinerary," Chloe said.  
  
"We know what we are doing," Whitney told her. "So don't give us any of your psycho-babble to try and discourage us. I'm sure my folks and Lana's aunt are going to give us enough trouble."  
  
"Oh, on the contrary," Chloe smiled. "I for one am chomping at the bits to see the entire pep squad lined up wearing puffy, teal-green, chiffon ball gowns. It's the outsider girl's dream come true."  
  
"Be careful what you wish," Lana warned with a smile. "I might make you one of my brides maids."  
  
"Ewe," Chloe joked. "Too hideous for me to picture."  
  
Whitney took a seat next to Lana.  
  
"So, quarterback, where does this shot gun wedding proposal coming from?" Chloe asked.  
  
"My heart, Chloe," he sneered. "Maybe you should try and snag yourself a man and you'll know what love is like. I hear Clark is available."  
  
"Whitney," Lana tried to call him off.  
  
Chloe lowered her head for a moment.  
  
He knew he had made a mistake by bringing it up. Whitney had no idea that Chloe truly did have feelings for Clark and that he had just about shot them down by not attempting to acknowledge it when she told him. "I'm sorry, Chloe," he said. "I didn't mean to ride you like that."  
  
"It's okay, Whitney," She shot back raising her head. "I understand the handicaps that come with being a naturally blond, dumb jock."  
  
"Okay, that was brutal," he commented. "I think if Lana does say yes, then a teal-green, chiffon ball gown is in your future."  
  
"Gee, thanks."  
  
Whitney looked at his watch. "Oh hey, babe," he turned back to Lana. "I have to get back to the store. I promised I relieve my Mom so she could go into the city for her check up." He leaned in and kissed her. "I'll call you tonight."  
  
Stepping back to get up, he bumped into Pete Ross who was walking pass.  
  
"Oh, hey, sorry, man," Whitney said turning around.  
  
"Watch yourself, Fordman," Pete gave him a hard push.  
  
Whitney braced him self against the table almost knocking Lana over. "What the heck, Ross?" He said angrily. "I said I was sorry. I didn't see you there."  
  
"Yeah, and I buy it, Fordman," Pete said with resentment. "Just watch yourself and stay away from me."  
  
"Fine," Whitney threw up his hands. "Don't go basket case on me."  
  
"You loud mouth jerk," Pete, growled dropping his backpack. "If you want a piece of me, then come and get it."  
  
Within a split second, Pete had swung at Whitney hitting him square on the lip. Whitney reacted instinctually and began swinging back. Before Lana and Chloe could reason out, the two teens were fighting it out and rolling in the dirt trying to better each other.  
  
"Stop it," they both yelled at the guys.  
  
"You are going to get yourself expelled," Chloe added.  
  
It was a few minutes before two teachers had come to break them up. "Stop this right now," The younger of the two male teachers warned. "This is a school yard, not the WWF."  
  
"He started it," Whitney said loudly. "What is wrong with you, Pete?"  
  
"I am just tired of being treated like dirt by you, Fordman," Pete cursed back while being restrained. "I have had my fill of the football jock's reign of terror. You mess with me and I'll mess up that perfect little face of yours."  
  
"Reign of terror?" Whitney repeated pulling himself free. "I knew it. You have popped a gasket, Ross. What are you talking about?"  
  
"I'm talking about you walking around like you are better than everyone else." Pete said through gritted teeth. "I'm talking about you tying people to poles and letting them die."  
  
"What?" Whitney spat. "Geesh, Ross. That wasn't even you and me." He argued. "I am not the one who hung that kid on the pole to die." He was careful not to mention that the people in question were the Whitney and Pete of the alternate world. He didn't need all the onlookers to know these far-fetched details.  
  
"Fine, deny it," Pete also pulled himself away and picked up the backpack. "But I finally have your number, and I am watching you. So don't mess with me, jock boy."  
  
"Fine," again Whitney held up his hands. "I don't want to fight with you, Ross."  
  
"What have we here?" Another voice joined the group. "Our very own Smallville production of Othello?"  
  
They turned and saw that Lex Luthor was walking through the dispersing crowd. "Did I already miss the floor show?"  
  
"Oh, great," Pete sighed walked away.  
  
"What has gotten into him?' Whitney asked Chloe.  
  
"I don't know," Chloe replied. "Pete hasn't been his usual self since he got back from over the rainbow with you guys."  
  
"Can you blame him?" Lex said. "After what he discovered about him and Whitney's relationship on the other side."  
  
"Shut up, Lex." Whitney warned. "The girls don't need to hear any stories from the warped world of Alex Luthor."  
  
Lex looked them over. "You mean you have been back for almost two weeks and you haven't told them?"  
  
"No," Whitney stood eye to eye with Lex. "What happened over there will stay over there."  
  
"Fine," Lex smiled. "I've got my own trouble, quarterback. I don't have time for soap operas."  
  
Lana and Chloe gave each other the suspicious eye.  
  
"I came over here to talk to Chloe," Lex announced as he walked over to her side.  
  
"Me?" She questioned.  
  
"Yes," He returned taking the seat next to her. "I've been keeping up with the Torch and Ledger the past few days, and I haven't seen your byline on the secret at level three. Are you setting me up for some big exclusive with the Daily Planet or something?"  
  
"No such luck for me," she sighed. "I had the whole story typed up in my laptop, but they said it all seemed too science fiction, even by Smallville standards. I tried to offer it to the Ledger, but they said they would believe in alternate universes when people with blue underwear and knee-high boots started to fly."  
  
"Well perhaps it's all for the best," Lex replied. "There is no telling what would happen if people believed there was a portal between dimensions in Luthor Corps basement."  
  
Whitney had pulled Lana aside when Lex sat down. "I have to go back to the store," he told her. "But I will pick you up tonight, and I hope you'll have your answer."  
  
"I thought you said I could sleep on it?" She gave him her cute smile.  
  
"Take a nap," he quipped back with a kiss on her cheek. "Bye."  
  
"Wait," She called to him. "What about school?"  
  
"No time for school, babe," he called back. "I have to go support my family."  
  
Lana shook her head as he disappeared in his truck.  
  
Lex was still sitting with Chloe when Lana returned. "So what did I miss?" She asked.  
  
"I was just telling Lex that my story was shot down at the newspapers, so our secret is safe for now," Chloe filled her in.  
  
"We might be better off that way," Lana added.  
  
"My thoughts exactly," Lex agreed.  
  
Lana saw the look in Chloe's eyes that was aching to ask, but she knew she would not make the first move, so Lana asked. "Have you heard from Clark?"  
  
Lex face seemed to become drawn just at the mention of his name. "No," he spoke softly. "Why, doesn't he come to school anymore?"  
  
"He's on the half day program, so his classes don't match up with ours a whole lot anymore," Chloe told him.  
  
"Well, I haven't heard from him," Lex lowered his eyes.  
  
"Really?" Chloe questioned. "Of all the people in his life, I thought sure he would keep in touch with you in a time like this."  
  
"Why is that, Chloe?" His voice seemed to take a turn for the harsh. "Because I have deep pockets to help with his family's finances?"  
  
"No," she tried to dissuade the thought. "Because you seem to be Clark's confidante these days. I mean, me Clark, and Pete are close, but it seems when things are weighing heavy on Clark these days, you are the one he turns to. Well, you and Lana." The words were out before realized that she had said it. They all saw, as the slight hurt seemed to take over her face.  
  
Lana looked up from her lunch with an uneasy feeling.  
  
"Oh," Lex thought not realizing himself that he and Clark had made such an impression on his friends. "Well, I guess that was a while back," he told them. "I haven't seen Clark since we got back."  
  
"You haven't seen him or haven't wanted to see him?" Lana had to ask.  
  
Lex gave her a cautious glance.  
  
Again Chloe and Lana gave each other the 'There is more to this story' look.  
  
"What happened over there, Lex?" Chloe asked. "Ever since the four of you came back, it's like the whole world is revolving in the opposite direction. What was so bad about the other reality that none of you are willing to talk about?"  
  
"Some things are best left alone," Lex stood up suddenly. "The world is safe from the evil Alex Luthor and that's all that matters." He walked away.  
  
"A great bunch of friends we are," Chloe remarked under her breath. "Clark is having the worst time of his life, and we can't even get past ourselves to offer him any support."  
  
Lana could not say anything. She busied herself collecting the containers from her lunch and putting them back in her bag. Chloe took this as a sign that the conversation was over and she left the table.  
  
To Be Continued 


	8. Chapter 8

1 Chapter Eight  
  
Clark had been gone from the room for several minutes when he made his way back up to Jonathan's intermediate care room with a tray from the hospital's cafeteria with supper for him and Martha. He had run home to Smallville and done his afternoon chores on the Kent farm, and then ran all the way back to Metropolis General Hospital where he left the truck parked, more for looks than actual need. Clark loved his parents, but hated the trek back to his father's room each time. While Jonathan was out of his sight, Clark could at least pretend that the events were not as bad as they really were. He didn't have to watch his father nearly motionless on the steel encased bed with all the tubes; rods and plaster casing that surrounded him. He took his time getting back with the tray and attempted to enjoy the trip up the two flights by the steps.  
  
Before he was aware, he had already reached the room. He could hear Martha and Jonathan talking softly. He wanted to strain his hearing to listen in. He had been becoming very good at overhearing things at will, but he afforded his parents the words of their private moment. He shuffled his feet loudly as he entered the room to announce his entrance.  
  
Martha looked up at her son with her best smile. "Clark, we were beginning to think you went all the way back to Smallville for the food."  
  
"Not like that would have taken a whole lot more time," he joked.  
  
She gave him a wry smile.  
  
"So where would you like to eat, Mom?" He asked gesturing to the tray. "I hear Dad's roof top patio has a wonderful view this time of day."  
  
"Ha hah," she sighed. "Put the tray on the table by the window and we'll eat in a minute."  
  
Clark put the tray down as instructed and turned back to his parent. "Is everything all right?" He asked. "You guys seem a little taxed by me being here."  
  
"It's not like that, Clark," Martha assured him. "Your father and I were just talking over something when you walked in."  
  
"Oh, what?" Clark asked innocently.  
  
"Sit down over here, Clark," Jonathan motioned with his eye movements for him to sit on the edge of the bed. "Your mother and I would like talk to you."  
  
Clark could see the worried Mom look on Martha's face when he took the seat. "This can't be good, can it?"  
  
"Doctor Morgan and his team of specialists came by while you were back in Smallville earlier today," Martha explained.  
  
"He's the Back and Nero surgery specialist, isn't he?" Clark asked.  
  
"Yes," she replied.  
  
"It's bad isn't it?" Was Clark's next questioned.  
  
Martha went to speak but found the words would not come. She turned towards Jonathan as if seeking his aid.  
  
"It's bad, Clark," Jonathan spoke up. "They were able to confirm our worst suspicions. They told me I would never be able to walk again, son."  
  
Clark had to choke back an impulse to tear up. "They are really sure, now?" He asked in a broken mild voice.  
  
"Yes, Clark," Jonathan replied. "They are sure."  
  
"I'm sorry, Pa," Clark was able to let out.  
  
"They also say that the movement of my arms will be very limited for a good time to come," Jonathan went on. "I am now and will for the rest of my life be cripple."  
  
Clark snorted out a small sob as he continued to try and control himself. "You don't know that for sure," he retorted. "Aren't you the one who told me all about miracles? You can walk again if you pray for a miracle."  
  
"We both know it doesn't work that way, son," Jonathan said. "Yes, I believe that God can raise me up off this bed in a heartbeat if that is his will, but we also have to accept that he may chose to keep me this way and he has a purpose for it. So we have been praying for the best, but preparing for the worst."  
  
"We have made some decisions," Martha joined the conversation. "We were talking about how to tell you when you just walked in. There are going to be some major changes."  
  
"I know," Clark replied. "And I am prepared to take over the daily running of the farm. I figure I can drop out of regular high school and take night courses until I graduate."  
  
"And then what?" Martha asked.  
  
"I'll work on the farm full time," he replied with a surprised look. "I'm not going to let the farm go under. I'll be around to run the farm for as long as you want."  
  
"I am sure you would do that, too," Jonathan said. "But we can't do that to you, Clark. You are cut out for very big things. We are not going to tie you down to our dead dream."  
  
"So what are you saying?" He asked.  
  
"I can never work on the farm again, Clark," Jonathan explained. "And the house is in no way set up for a wheelchair bound person. All the bedrooms are upstairs and the halls are narrow."  
  
"I can carry you, and we can always remodel," Clark felt as if he were fighting for his own future with his parents.  
  
"You know that this is all improbable, son," Jonathan sighed. "We are not going to let you give up your future for us, and we can remodel the house all we want, but the farm will still go under if no one is there to work it. Your mother and I have talked it over and we are selling the farm."  
  
"What?" Clark knew this was coming, but the words still shocked him.  
  
"We made some calls and the deal has already been finalized," Martha added. "We already found a buyer."  
  
"Who?" Clark asked.  
  
"Luthor Corps has been eyeing the land for a long while, and I cut the deal with their people this afternoon," Clark's father told him. "They made us a very generous offer that not only paid off all the mortgages, but left us with enough money to purchase a specially equip apartment for people in my condition, right here in the city."  
  
"We're moving to Metropolis?" Clark asked.  
  
"If you want," Martha said. "But we know how hard the move would be on you, and your father will be in rehab for several months, and I will be busy setting up the new place, trying to finish my own school and visiting your father. So we thought you might want to stay in Smallville and finish your high school with your friends. We passed the idea by Pete's parents a few days ago incase of this event, and they said they would be happy for you to stay with them during the weeks. You could always come up here and be with me and your Dad on week ends when he gets out of rehab."  
  
Clark stood up and walked to the window. "You're sending me away?"  
  
"No, Clark," Martha rushed his side. "We would never do that to you. We are trying to not revolve your life around your father's health," she told him. "We want you to have as normal and happy a life as possible. We want you to be happy."  
  
Clark looked out at the setting sun. "I would be happy at home with you," he said under his breath.  
  
"We know that, Clark," She reached for his cheek with her soft hands. "But you need to think of your future, and right now we would be a heavy weight around your neck if we asked you to stay. You need to build a life for yourself, and being a nurse maid to us won't help."  
  
Clark looked into his mothers pleading eyes. She wanted him to know that he was loved. She wanted him to know that this was for his own good. She wanted him to make it all right in his heart. "We love you Clark, and this is killing us. But we have to do what is right for you."  
  
"I wonder if they thought the same thing," Clark spoke as he made his way to the door.  
  
"Who, Clark?" Jonathan questioned.  
  
Clark stood before the closed door and looked back at them. "My real parents when they sent me away and I ended up here," he let the words out softly. "I've been sent away twice in one life time and I'm not even out of high school yet."  
  
"Clark," Martha began to approach him.  
  
"I need to take a walk," he said raising his hands to fend her off. "I'll see you later." He opened the door and stepped out.  
  
"I need to go after him," Martha said to Jonathan.  
  
"Don't, Martha," he said back. "Give the boy some time to sort this out. He'll know it is for the best. Clark is a good kid, he'll do the right thing."  
  
  
  
The walk for Clark began a quick jog then a high-speed race, and before he knew it, Clark found himself back in Smallville standing outside of the Smallville High School. The sun had been down for almost an hour and most of the lights were turned out, but he saw that the rooms containing the Torch New Paper offices was still lit. No one would be working at this time accept for the school's most dedicated reporter, Chloe Sullivan. Clark made his way into the building through the one door that was left unlocked until nine each night.  
  
Entering the office, he saw that Chloe was hard at work on one of the computer terminals. She did not hear him make his approach.  
  
"Hey, Chloe," he spoke to her startled reaction.  
  
"Clark?" She turned to face him. "I had no idea anyone else was here."  
  
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," he said in a sheepish tone. "I saw the light on and I thought I would just stop in."  
  
Chloe wanted to welcome him with open arms, but now every time she saw him, she could only think about how she told him she loved him right in front of his dream girl, Lana. So she chose not to say anything. She was too embarrassed to speak.  
  
"I know we haven't seen much of each other the past few weeks, and I thought this would be a good time to say hi," he told her. "I've missed not being able to hang around with you and Pete down at the Beanery."  
  
"Yeah," she finally said something. "Well, I've been really tied up here at the Torch. I haven't had a whole lot of time for the 'me' things lately."  
  
"Would you like to go to the Beanery and have an espresso with me?" He asked.  
  
The nerves she had been trying to suppress came bubbling up to the service. "I…" She stammered. "I don't think so, Clark. I have a lot of work to do here."  
  
"Oh," Clark replied with a hurt tone. "I didn't realize you were so busy. I guess I should leave."  
  
"I'm sorry," Chloe let out, seeing the pain on his face. "I just have things to do."  
  
"Yeah, okay," he said. "I guess I'll leave you to it."  
  
"Thanks, Clark," She replied turning back to her computer screen. Inside her head she was screaming at herself: "Clark is opening up to you, idiot. He needs a friend. Talk to him." But on the outside she was too embarrassed to speak to her best friend any more.  
  
Clark turned and began his walk to the door, but inside he knew he could not let this end like this. He had to say something, or their friendship would be lost in this endless dance forever. He turned back. "About the night at the hospital," he started. "We should talk about what you said when I was leaving for the other side."  
  
The keys on the keyboard stopped clicking, so Clark knew he had her attention, but she did not turn around.  
  
"You told me you loved me," he continued. "I know you tried to pass it off as a line from one friend to another, but it meant more, didn't it?"  
  
Chloe continued to stay silent.  
  
"If it didn't, you would not be so afraid to talk to me right now."  
  
"I said I was busy," She said in a shaky voice.  
  
"You're avoiding me, Chloe," He replied. "There seems to be a lot of that going around these days. All my friends seem to be keeping their distances from me."  
  
"Well, you know how it is when someone is going through a crisis," she lied. "We just don't know how to act around you right now."  
  
"It's more than that where you are concerned," Clark stood behind her. "I know how you feel, and it's killing you because you know I can't return those feelings for you right now."  
  
"Please stop," she whispered under her breath.  
  
"I do love you, Chloe, but not in the way you want. I can't fight my feeling for Lana any more than you can fight your feelings for me." Clark explained.  
  
"Then why are we having this discussion?" She asked.  
  
"Because I care about you, and it's killing me to see you hurting like this," he returned.  
  
"Then just forget about it," she told him. "I said what I said in the heat of the moment. Let it just be one big mistake and move on."  
  
"I can't do that, can you?" Clark asked her. "You said what you are feeling, and I was unable to return your affection. We can't just forget about what happen between us and pretend it's not happening."  
  
Chloe stood up and walked a few feet away. "Then what are we suppose to do Clark?" She asked. "How am I supposed to be around you knowing that you know how much it eats me up inside to be near you?"  
  
"I don't have the answer, Chloe," he replied. "I just know that ignoring it is not the way to handle this."  
  
She looked at him with sad eyes. "Do you want to know the truth?" She asked. "Then I will tell you. I have been in love with you Clark Kent from the very first day I saw you walking down the hall in this school. I knew you were something special and I made it a point to get to know you. I nagged Pete every minute of every day until he introduced us. And then I learned about your obsession with Lana Lang. I knew then I could never tell you the truth without making myself look like a complete fool. But now I've done it, and I was right about being a fool."  
  
"I don't think of you as a fool, Chloe," Clark assured her. "I kinda think it's flattering, and I am honored that you like me, but…"  
  
"But then there's Lana," she finished his sentence. "There's always Lana."  
  
Clark took a deep breath in exasperation. "What can I do Chloe? How can I make this right again?"  
  
"You can't, Clark," a tear rolled down her face. "This is something I have to deal with on my own."  
  
"I'm sorry, Chloe,"  
  
"Just leave. Please," she said as she turned away again.  
  
Clark knew that this was not an easy fix. He wanted to do something, but even with all his powers, this was a job beyond his reach. He reached the door to open it just as another student stuck his head inside the room.  
  
"Hey, there's a possible jumper on the roof, and I think its Ross," he announced.  
  
Clark and Chloe faced each other from opposite side of the room and said, "Pete."  
  
  
  
Clark, Chloe and the other student reached the top of the stares before anyone else arrived. "Should I call the police?" The young man asked them.  
  
"No," Clark replied watching as Pete stood tottering on the ledge several feet away. "I think we can handle this. Can you give us a few minutes?"  
  
"Sure," he said leaving the roof.  
  
"Pete has been freaked out ever since he got back from the other side," Chloe told Clark. "He and Whitney even got into a fight today. I've never seen him so out of it."  
  
"Things were hard for Pete on the other side," Clark replied. "I think we were all left with scares."  
  
"What do you think he's doing on the ledge?"  
  
"I don't know. Wait here while I go talk to him." He walked towards where Pete was standing.  
  
Pete heard the gravel of the roof move under Clark's feet and tuned his head towards him. "Hey, Clark," He created with a big smile. "What brings you up here?"  
  
"You, Pete," Clark said cautiously. "I was wondering what you were up to standing on the ledge like that."  
  
"Have you ever heard that song with the line 'I believe I can fly'?" Pete held his arms out like wings.  
  
"You can't fly, Pete," Clark spoke quickly. "No one can fly."  
  
"I know that," Pete replied back. "I was just standing here and that song came to mind."  
  
Clark walked a little closer. He considered that he could pull Pete down and have him on solid ground before he even knew what hit him, but with him standing so close to the edge, the margin for error was too great to take the risk.  
  
"It looks awfully high up here," Clark glanced over the edge. "Are you sure you should be up there?"  
  
"You always did have a thing about heights, Clark." Pete laughed. "You were the only kid in the tri-county area without a tree house. Luckily I was more interested in your comic book collection than in your adventure skills. We had some good times when we were kids."  
  
"And we're still having them, Pete," Clark was choosing his words carefully.  
  
"We aren't kids anymore, Clark," Pete's mood was growing serious. "Life is not so simple anymore." He placed his hands down at his side.  
  
"It was never meant to be," Clark returned. "That's why God gives us friends and family to watch out for each other and help each other when we need it. I want to help you, Pete."  
  
"I don't need help, Clark," Pete said looking down at his friend. "I just need to figure some things out."  
  
"There seems to be a lot of that going around these days," Clark tried to smile. "Why don't you climb down and we can talk about it?"  
  
Pete did not say a word but stared out over the ledge.  
  
"Pete," Clark held up his hand a few feet away. "Please take my hand and I'll help you down."  
  
"Do you ever wonder if you belong here, Clark?" Pete ignored his request and posed the question instead. "Do you ever think that you should not 'be' at all?"  
  
"All the time, Pete," Clark continued to watch over the side at the lights of the moving traffic below.  
  
"Did you know I was dead on the other side?" He asked. "Whitney killed me."  
  
"It was a mistake, Pete," Clark explained. "It was suppose to happen like it did here, only I wasn't around in that Smallville, so they picked on you instead. No one was ever supposed to die."  
  
"Are you sure? I mean, what if my dying was suppose to happen here, too, only you got in the way and took my place and not the other way around," Pete reasoned out. "Maybe my real fate was to die on that pole, and I missed it."  
  
"I don't think so," Clark tried to make him understand. "You are going to be around for a very long time to come, Pete. We got our whole lives planned out together for crying out loud. We are going to be dorm roommates in collage. Then you already agreed to be my best man at my wedding."  
  
"To Lana. Yeah I know," Pete interjected much to Chloe's dismay while she stood a few feet away.  
  
"And then there was the fiftieth Super Bowl game. We already agreed to get tickets and go, no matter who will be playing," Clark continued. "We are suppose to become successful and take our families on vacation together every year. Now does that sound like the plans of someone who should be dead?"  
  
"Those are dreams, Clark," Pete replied. "Not fortunes. We don't always get what we want in life. Sometimes we don't even get a whole life. For all you know, you might die an early death, Clark."  
  
"Well until Dooms Day comes, I plan on holding onto this life with both hands. And you should too, Pete."  
  
The words seemed to hit at Pete's core. His entire mood seemed to darken and his face became full of pain. "Why weren't you there, Clark?" He asked. "Why weren't you there to save me from Whitney? You always save me."  
  
Clark had to look away to fight off his own emotions. He needed to stay strong at that moment. Pete's life depended on it. "I wish I were there, Pete. You didn't deserve to die then, and you don't deserve to die now."  
  
"I don't deserve to know what happen to me over there," he returned. "I don't deserve to have to wonder if I should be dead or alive right now."  
  
"You deserve to be alive," Chloe joined in. "Pete, I didn't know what was making you act so strange these past two weeks, but now I do. Please let us help you."  
  
"I don't need help, Chloe. I need answers."  
  
"Then let us find them together," she told him. "Standing on the brink of total self-destruction is not going to help you any."  
  
"Please, Pete," Clark held his hand out again. "Come down and we'll talk about it. I promise we will help you figure this out."  
  
Pete looked down at the moving people beneath him. "I don't want to die, Clark. I just want answers."  
  
"Then let us help you find the answers," Clark said. "No one wants to see you risk hurting yourself like this."  
  
"I want to go home, Clark."  
  
"I'll take you home, Pete," he told him. "I promise you that."  
  
"Please, Pete," Chloe added.  
  
Pete had just begun to bend over to reach Clark's hand when a loud horn from down the street sounded and startled him. He slipped and lost his footing falling backwards over the edge.  
  
"No!" Clark screamed racing to lean over and grabbed Pete's hand just before he was out of reach. Pete's body smacked the side of the building with a thud.  
  
"Are you all right?" Clark asked him.  
  
"I'm fine, just pull me up," he called out. "I think I know what my answer to my question is. I don't want to die, Clark."  
  
Clark tried to make it look difficult, but he was able to pull Pete up with no difficulty at all. He could not wipe the smile off of his face either. They had done it. Pete's life was saved.  
  
Pete clung onto Clark as he lowered him to the roof. "Thanks, Clark."  
  
"Are you okay now?" Clark asked.  
  
"Yeah, thank God you were there when I needed you," he looked at Clark's face. "Like always."  
  
"Oh, Pete," Chloe hugged her friend. "You had me so scared."  
  
"I'm sorry, guys," said Pete. "I think I still have some things to work out in my head, but I also know that standing on the brink of disaster is not the place to do it." He stood up and brushed himself off. "Thank again."  
  
"We will always be there for you, Pete," Clark grinned  
  
"I know that now," Pete said. "I guess I just needed to be reminded."  
  
The three of them gathered for a group hug.  
  
"I think I'm gonna go home and sleep for about the next seventy two hours," Pete joked.  
  
"Do you want us to take you home?" Chloe asked.  
  
"No thanks," Pete smiled. "I still need a little time alone with my head, but I'm fine. I promise no more walks on the wild side."  
  
Chloe gave him her best friend smile as he walked away.  
  
Once Pete was in the hallway, Clark turned to Chloe. "Thank for helping me with Pete," he said. "Do you still want to talk about what we said downstairs?"  
  
"Maybe later," she shyly replied. "I heard what you and Pete said about you marring Lana someday."  
  
"I didn't mean to hurt you again," Clark tried to assure her.  
  
"I know, and that's not it," she told him. "I think you should know that Whitney proposed to Lana at lunch today. She told him she would have to think about it, but I'm pretty sure she is going to say yes to him. Tonight."  
  
Clark bowed his head with a sad look.  
  
"That's not all," Chloe continued. "Later on I overheard some of his jock friends talking. They said that if Lana told him yes, tonight, then he was going to take her and elope to one of those southern states with the lower legal age limits for marriage. They are going to run away and get married, tonight."  
  
"No, not again," Clark sighed. "What happened over there is happening over here now. I need to stop them before everything repeats itself."  
  
Chloe gave him a hurt look.  
  
"I'm sorry, Chloe, even if I am not the one who ends up with Lana, I need to stop her from making the biggest mistake in her life. Whitney is in love with their son, not her." Clark told her.  
  
Chloe then gave him a confused look.  
  
"Listen, I can't explain right now," he said. "I need to stop this wedding. Can you watch over Pete until I get back?"  
  
"Sure," she sounded hesitating.  
  
Clark stopped for a minute and looked into her eyes. "I never stop hurting you, do I?" He took her hands. "I wish things could be different, Chloe. I really do. But lying to myself and you would not help anyone."  
  
"I know, Clark," she tried to smile. "I understand, now go stop Lana from marring that blond door stopper."  
  
"Thanks," he replied with a gentle kiss on her forehead, and then ran off to the steps.  
  
  
  
  
  
Clark slowed to a normal speed as he approached Lana's house where she lived with her aunt Nell since her parent's death when she was only three. He searched the area and found that Whitney's truck was not there; however there were fresh tire marks that seemed to be from larger wheels than Nell's car.  
  
The lights were still on in the house, so he thought best to knock on the door and ask for Lana before he assumed the worst. He slowly stepped onto the front porch and knocked.  
  
It took Nell a few minutes before she made her way from the kitchen to the front door, and she smiled as she opened the door to see Clark standing there.  
  
"Clark?" She questioned. "I didn't expect to see you tonight. I thought you would be up at the hospital with you father."  
  
"I was," Clark answered sheepishly. "I needed to see Lana about something," he said. "Is she home?"  
  
"Oh, no," Nell returned. "She left for a ride with Whitney about a half- hour ago. Can I give her a message?"  
  
Clark's head sank as he stared at the floor. "I don't think so."  
  
"Would you like to come in for a minute Clark?" Nell asked. "You look a little upset. Is there anything I can do for you?"  
  
"I don't think so," he replied.  
  
"Clark," She took his arms. "I know that you are going through some hard times right now, and I want you to know that if you need anything, Lana and I are right up the road from your place. Your Dad and I were close once, and I'd like to think that we are still friends. So if you ever get lonely at that old farmhouse by yourself while your mom is up in Metropolis with Jonathan, then you just come by and say hello. I may even cook you a nice hot meal if you're nice," she spoke with a grin.  
  
"Thank you," Clark said politely. "I guess I should get going."  
  
He turned around and then turned back. "Do you know if Lana took a bag or a back pack with her when she left with Whitney?" He asked Nell.  
  
"She had a large handbag," Nell told him. "Why, did she have something in it that belonged to you?"  
  
'Yes,' Clark thought to himself. 'My heart.' He instead told Nell. "No, I just heard something about Whitney today, and I thought I would come by and check it out."  
  
"What have you heard?" Nell grew concerned and asked.  
  
Clark wanted to say something about Whitney's proposal and his plans to elope, but he didn't want to say anything incase Lana said no. He didn't want her getting in trouble with her aunt. "Have you been up in her room this evening?"  
  
"No," Nell gave him a puzzled look. "What are you trying not to tell me here, Clark?"  
  
He gave her a bewildered look.  
  
"Has Lana done something with Whitney that I should know about?"  
  
"This is going to sound strange," he finally said. "Could you please go up there and see if there is any thing missing like cloths and personal items. Or maybe a note."  
  
Nell gave him the once over before she turned and walked up to Lana's bedroom. It took a few minutes of him waiting, but Clark saw the look of disappointment in Nell's eyes as she came down the steps with a piece of paper in her hand.  
  
"Is everything alright?" He asked.  
  
Nell first looked at him with bafflement, and then her look became angry. "Did you know about this?" She asked shaking the note. "Did you know that Whitney was going to take Lana away tonight?"  
  
"No," Clark defended himself. "I only heard the rumor a few minutes ago. Is it what I think?"  
  
"She's going to ruin her life," Nell said handing him the note. "My little girl is throwing her life away."  
  
Clark took the note and read it.  
  
Dear Aunt Nell,  
  
I hope this will not upset you, but Whitney has asked me to marry him, and I have said yes. I hope you will understand our excitement at not wanting to put it off another day, but we have decided to elope. Please, don't worry, as I am with the man I love, and he will provide me with all the love and security I have always wanted. I will have a family again.  
  
Please understand, and I will see you in a few days. Wish me luck.  
  
I love you, Nell. Thank you for my life.  
  
Lana  
  
"They are going to do it," Clark said under his breath.  
  
"I need to call the sheriff and have him stop this," Nell spoke his ideas out loud.  
  
"I don't think it will work." Clark told her. "Let me see if I can catch up to them and talk them out of it," He handed her back the letter.  
  
"They could be anywhere by now," Nell called to him.  
  
"Don't worry," He replied. "I think I have an idea what direction they are headed." He turned and walked away.  
  
Nell closed the door and read the note again. "Oh, Lana," she sighed. "What would your parents think of me now? I let their little girl go off and get married before she was old enough to know what it really meant."  
  
  
  
The radio in Whitney's truck was playing Lana's favorite song as she snuggled up to him. She was truly happy being with the man she loved. All was going to be well now. Soon she would be Mrs. Whitney Fordman and the security she had longed for all her life, for a family of her own, would be hers. Life was at it's best, but why was something nagging at her? Why was she thinking about how Clark would react to this News? He was her good friend, but that was all he was to her: wasn't he?  
  
Whitney took a quick glance down at his soon to be bride. "How are you doing, babe?"  
  
"Fine," she said in a less than certain voice.  
  
"You aren't having second thoughts, are you?" He asked.  
  
"No," Lana answered wondering if she was trying assure him or herself. "I guess I am trying to picture our future," she told him tugging gently at her meteor necklace he wore around his neck.  
  
"It's going to be great, Lana. I will make you happy everyday for the rest of our lives," he assured. "We are going to have that family we always wanted. Everything will be perfect. I will be like this necklace. I will always find my way back to you no matter what happens."  
  
"Sure it will," Lana said just as they heard a loud popping sound and the truck began to veer off the road.  
  
"Darn it," Whitney cursed pulling off to the side of the road. "We just blew a tire."  
  
Lana sat up as he pulled to a complete stop.  
  
"How bad is it?" She asked looking back at the tire thread in the road.  
  
"I'll have to take a look to know for sure," he told her grabbing a flashlight from behind the seat. "Wait here."  
  
Lana looked around, and they were in the middle of a deserted country road. They were about thirty miles out of Smallville, and there were miles left to go before they arrived at the small chapel in Arkansas. She brought the records from the blood drive a few weeks earlier and hoped that it would be enough of a blood test. Whitney assured her that he would take care of everything, and like always, she trusted him.  
  
After a while, Whitney came back to the driver's side window. "It's a flat," he announced. "I just need to jack it up and put on the spare. It will only take a few minutes."  
  
"Oh, okay," She said back. "I am going to go into that field for a minute." She pointed to her right.  
  
"Be careful," he said pulling out the jack from behind the seat again. "Don't go too far."  
  
"I'll be fine," she smiled. "I've walked down a lot of country roads in Smallville. I know how this is done."  
  
Whitney winked and went off to the rear driver's side tire to replace it.  
  
Lana walked several yards into the thick brush before she thought she found a place where she would not be seen by anyone. She felt strange taking such steps to hide her self away from the man she would soon be married to, but reasoned that anyone else could drive by at any moment, and so it was better to be safe.  
  
She spotted out a large tree a few feet away just as she felt a gush of wind pass closely by. She turned quickly but saw nothing. "Don't be paranoid." She thought to herself.  
  
Reaching the tree, she unzipped her jacket when she thought she heard a voice.  
  
"Lana," a man's voice said.  
  
Lana turned quickly and saw Clark Kent standing behind her. "Oh, my God," she gasped. She reached down and picked up a large branch.  
  
"Lana, no," Clark took a protective stance. "It's me Clark, Clark Kent."  
  
"How do I know it's really you, this time?" She said shaking the stick.  
  
"The clone is gone," Clark reminded her with a sad look. "Is that all you will ever remember when you see me now?"  
  
"This is how he snuck up on me the last time," she replied with a cautious stare.  
  
"I swear it's really me," he insisted.  
  
Lana looked around. "How did you get here?" She asked.  
  
"I was following in my truck, and when I saw Whitney changing the tire, I parked out of sight and ran up here to see you," he lied about his true mode of transportation. Clark had run all the way from Smallville.  
  
"Why are you here, Clark?" She was now angrier than scared.  
  
"You're aunt found the letter, and I told her I would try and stop you from making this mistake."  
  
"Mistake?" She repeated.  
  
"You're not ready to get married, Lana," he told her. "You haven't even finished high school yet. How are you going to live?"  
  
"Whitney will work at his father's store," she told him. "He knows that now he has lost his scholarship, he has little to no chance of going to college, so he's going to quit school work at his Dad's store and get his GED at night. And why am I even telling you all of this?" She stopped herself. "This is none of your business, Clark."  
  
"It is when I see my friends throwing away their futures," Clark insisted. "Lana, you are a very smart girl. Think this through"  
  
"I have, Clark," she gave him a stern look. "I love Whitney and he loves me. We are going to start a family together and be happy."  
  
"Happy ever after only happens in fairy tales, Lana," Clark warned. "This is the biggest mistake of your life."  
  
"Then it will be the biggest mistake," Lana retorted. "But like you said, it will be my life. My life is mine, not yours, not Nell's and not some statistic about high school romances gone wrong. This is my life Clark and I will live it however I want."  
  
"Please, Lana, everything else is falling apart around me, please don't do this," Clark pleaded.  
  
"I am sorry about your folks and all your problems right now, Clark. But this has nothing to do with you or anyone else," she spoke with determined resolve. "This is my life, and I want to marry, Whitney."  
  
Clark was at a loss for words. He had said everything he felt he could to try and stop her. A drizzle of rain began to fall.  
  
"I have to get back to Whitney," she said.  
  
"I'm in love with you," he blurted out.  
  
Lana stopped and turned back. "What?"  
  
"I'm in love with you, Lana," he told her and attempted to smile through his grief.  
  
"Is this some lame attempt to stop me again, Clark?" She questioned. "Because this is really sick to tell me you love me on my wedding day."  
  
"It's true, Lana," he said with a sheepish tone. "You know that I have always had feelings for you. I never had the nerve to say it until now. I am in love with you."  
  
Lana stared up at him for a long while. She was at a loss for words. She always knew there was something there between the two of them, but she had never allowed herself to consider that it might come to this.  
  
"You have feelings for me too, don't you?" He finally spoke up.  
  
"I can't do this right now," she turned around.  
  
Clark reached for her and gently turned her back. "Please don't marry Whitney tonight."  
  
Lana stared up with big puppy dog eyes. The rain was coming faster and the water ran down her teary face. She was becoming a drench mess, and Clark thought she had never looked more beautiful. He summing up all his nerve and pulled her close into a kiss. He kissed her like he had never kissed another girl and gave her all his passion and all of his love.  
  
"Clark," she pulled away.  
  
Clark held her close and placed his wet forehead over her forehead. "I love you, Lana. Don't leave me."  
  
She ran her hand over his crew cut head. Her mind drifted for a few seconds, and then she pulled away. "No," she determined. "Whitney is who I want. I love him and he loves me. We are going to be a family, Clark." Lana's voice seemed more like a cry than a statement.  
  
Clark looked longingly at her. "But, Lana--"  
  
"Good bye, Clark," she said turning away. "I need to get back to Whitney."  
  
"Lana," Clark started to step forward but then felt ill to his stomach. The sensation was the same as he always felt when he was near the meteor rocks, but Smallville was miles away. How could he be getting sick, now? Then he turned and saw him. Whitney Fordman was standing behind him in the pouring rain.  
  
"I told you to stay away from my girl, Kent," he grunted with gritted teeth. "I warned you." He took Clark by the collar and swung his fist into his face.  
  
Clark reeled back with a jolt and landed in a pile of dead wet leaves. He rubbed his jaw from the blow. The effects of all the events in the last few weeks and the necklace around Whitney's neck left Clark all too venerable to his attack.  
  
"For the last time," Whitney stood over him. "Stay away from my wife," he warned and then walked away.  
  
By the time Clark made his way back to the road, he saw the headlights from Whitney's truck pulling away into the night. They were driving south.  
  
To Be Continued: The Final Chapter 


	9. Chapter 9

1 Chapter Nine  
  
The walk back to Smallville took time for Clark. His world was shattered by the latest revelations, and there was nowhere he wanted to be. He could run back to Metropolis General and check in on his folks, but Clark was in no mood to put on a brave face for anyone right now. Everything was changing for the worse in his life. He had always tried to be the man everyone wanted him to be. He tried to be the good and loyal son to his parents. Chloe and Pete always had a good paling around partner. Lana could have her friend and lead him on at the same time. Everyone wanted Clark to be something or someone for him or her. The only person who took him at face value was the one person who wanted him nowhere around.  
  
Clark was alone and he needed a friend. Not any friend, but the only one who expected Clark to be who he was. Of course he had no idea who Clark really was until recently, and now he wanted nothing to do with his former best friend.  
  
"Lex," Clark whispered just as he looked up and realized that he had instinctively walked to Luthor mansion.  
  
The sun had been down for hours and the time was getting late, but Clark knew that Lex was not one to go to bed early. He watched as the light from the fireplace flicked through the studies window. Lex was sitting in front of the fire reading a book and enjoying a glass of his favorite beverage before turning in for the night. It was a ritual that Clark had become familiar with in the time they had known each other. He often joked with his best friend telling him that he was a borderline compulsive. Then Lex would remind him of his habit of checking in on Lana with the telescope in his fortress of solitude. So the two had cancelled each other out with their own idiosyncrasies.  
  
By the time Clark stopped before his usual point of entrance of sliding through the gate, he was drenched from the falling rain. It was now an early spring thunderstorm, the drops were fierce and cold, and to anyone else, they would be painful, but Clark stood silently and watched.  
  
A shadow crossed across the light from the study, and Clark could make out Lex's distinctive form. One of the curtains pulled drawn on one side, and he peaked out into the night. A lighting bolt seemed to strike at the perfect moment, and Clark was illuminated like it was midday. He knew Lex had seen him, but he closed the blinds and disappeared into the house.  
  
Clark could not take it anymore. With everything else that had happen that night, he knew that he and Lex would have it out, and the relationship would be resolved one way or another. He slipped through the bars of the gates and walked to the front door. Mustering all his courage, he rang the bell.  
  
One of Lex's many butlers open the door.  
  
"Mr. Luthor is not in," the man lied.  
  
"I saw him," Clark stated with firm resolve. "I saw him and I am coming in."  
  
"Please, sir," the man held up a hand. "I shall call security if I must."  
  
Clark could have easily pushed his way in, but making a rush for the study would solve nothing. Instead he stood in the doorway and yelled into the hall. "I know you're here, Lex. I saw you and you saw me. I am not leaving until you let me in."  
  
There was silence to answer him.  
  
Clark felt easily defeated. His eyes lowered to the ground and he leaned into the doorframe.  
  
"I am afraid, that I must ask you to leave again," the butler said.  
  
Clark looked at him as if he were about to cry.  
  
"Please sir." The Butler added.  
  
"Lex," Clark ignored him and said loudly. "I thought we could talk about this. Things have gone from bad to worse since we got back. I feel like everything is lost. I have lost too much tonight. If you are going to make me say this in front of Reginald here, then I will," Clark took a deep breath. "I don't want to loose you too, Lex."  
  
After a few seconds of more silence, Clark stood straight again and looked at Reginald. He looked down the hall and spoke again. "I guess that is all I had to say," he said. "Good bye, Lex."  
  
Clark had turned to the door just as they heard the clacking of Lex's designer shoes on the hardwood floor outside the study a few yards away. Clark turned and faced his friend who gave no indications of his emotions on his stoic face.  
  
"Reginald," Lex spoke. "Would you get some towels for our guest and bring them into the study?"  
  
"Yes, sir," Reginald nodded and disappeared up the stairs.  
  
Lex shot Clark a glance, but did not say a word. He turned and returned to the study. Clark took this as an indication to follow.  
  
Once in the study, Lex tossed him a dishcloth that was on the serving tray where his evenings drink of hot coco was sitting. Clark used the small cloth to dry his face. Lex poured a second cup of hot chocolate into another mug that seemed to serve no real purpose until now. He walked over to Clark and handed it to him.  
  
"Drink this," he said almost sternly.  
  
"Thanks," Clark took the cup and sipped it.  
  
"I can have Reginald get you some dry cloths," he said. "You can hang your jacket on mantle next to the fire."  
  
Clark placed the mug on the end table and slipped the jacket off. He placed it over the fireplace mantle and attempted to dry him self in front of the roaring fire. The cold was actually starting to get to him. His body had not recovered fully from trauma a few weeks earlier.  
  
"This fire should help dry me out," Clark said over his shoulder to Lex.  
  
"Have you eaten?" Lex asked in the same toneless voice as he poked at the fire.  
  
"I'm fine," Clark answered softly. Lex was only inches away from him in front of the large harp, but he might as well have been a million miles away. The connection that the two seemed to share was not there. He was cold and mechanical towards Clark.  
  
Lex walked over to the door and grabbed two large plush towels from Reginald and then sent him away. He returned resting the open cloth over Clark's head and handed him the folded one.  
  
"Those should help," he said returning to his large armchair. He picked up his mug and returned to reading his book.  
  
Clark dried himself off as best as he could, and when he was finished, he folded the towels nicely and placed them on the harp in front of the fire to dry. He left his rain soaked shoes near the fire and walked stocking footed across the carpet back to where Lex was sitting.  
  
He fiddled with the small dishcloth he had earlier and placed it over the place on the sofa next to Lex's chair where he was intending to sit. The task was proving to be difficult as he wrestled with the corners to keep them stretched out.  
  
After a few moments, Lex looked up from his book. "Oh for God's sake, Clark. Just sit down already. I can have the upholstery cleaned and dried if I have to."  
  
Clark gave him his big puppy dog eyes. "Oh," he spoke softly. He finally sat down and looked over at Lex who had already read the same sentence thirty times trying to find interest in anything other than having a conversation with Clark.  
  
"Stephen King," Clark commented. "I didn't think he was your style."  
  
"Books are like food, Clark," Lex said not looking up. "After you've digested all the healthy classics, you get a taste for some good junk from time to time."  
  
"Ah, I see," said Clark with a little unease. "Have you read the Left Behind series? I don't think they are completely Biblically accurate, but they are a good read."  
  
Lex looked over his book at him. "What a shock," he said sarcastically. "And here I thought you were an Anne Rice junkie."  
  
Clark smiled and went back to his nervous silence. He fiddled with his hands as Lex read the sentence four more times. He tried to wait for him to show some interest, but he could not wait any longer.  
  
"We need to talk, Lex," Clark spoke up.  
  
Lex shot him a glance.  
  
"We can't go on like this forever," Clark spoke again. "We have to clear the air between us or we'll never get over this."  
  
Lex stopped reading and closed the book. He placed it on his lap and looked over at Clark. "You lied to me, Clark. I am mad, but I will deal with it. The friendship, like this conversation, is over."  
  
He stood up, placing the book on the arm of the chair and began to walk away.  
  
"Wait a minute," Clark jumped up. "That's it. You get mad and the whole friendship is over? Who said you get to call all the shots?"  
  
"It's over, Clark," Lex told him without turning around. "You can wait for your things to dry, and then please leave."  
  
"I don't want it to be over, Lex," Clark said in his little boy lost voice. "You are my best friend and I don't want to loose that. I need you in my life."  
  
"What ever we had was not friendship," Lex retorted turning to face him. "Friends do not have as many secrets and lies from each other as we do."  
  
"That's right, Lex," Clark agreed sternly. "We both have secrets we haven't told each other. Only mine were not supposed to hurt people. I just didn't want to end up on a slab like one of the creatures on the X- Files. I didn't want Smallville to become some type of Roswell. I didn't want people to know that I am a freak."  
  
"I would have never tried to make you any of those things," Lex shot back.  
  
"How am I suppose to know that Lex? I mean Alex knew for two minutes, and he was already trying to kill me for my DNA," Clark reminded him. "How was I supposed to know that you are nothing like your alternate?"  
  
"You never gave me the chance to prove it to you," Lex growled in a low anguished voice.  
  
"I am sorry I did what I did, Lex," Clark walked up to him. "I have to say I would still do the same thing again, because I saw what Alex was like. A part of him, however small, will be in you always. I could never take that chance."  
  
"Well, I know now, and you are still alive," Lex returned sternly. "Don't I get any points for that?"  
  
"We both know it's not like that," Clark said back with pain filled eyes. "I trust you because I have to, and I know you would not go where Alex went by trying to use me. We know where that landed him."  
  
Lex gave him a shocked look. He was surprised; it was as if Clark were giving him a warning. He rubbed his face and walked back over towards the chair.  
  
"I know it was hard watching yourself die." Clark continued with concern in is voice. "I am sorry we both had to see that. I never meant for anyone to die."  
  
"He deserved what he got," Lex finally spoke. "If he had not tried to kill us, he would not have killed himself by mistake."  
  
"Then that is not what this is all about?" Clark asked raising his hands in a gesture of confusion.  
  
"You lied to me, Clark," Lex yelled, much to his own surprise. "You lied!" His words and voice were so loud, he could hear them echoing inside his own head. "It's not the dead guy, or the life and death struggle. It's about you and me, and you lied to me over and over again."  
  
"Every one lies, Lex," Clark answered back raising his own voice.  
  
"That's right," Lex poked his finger in Clark's chest. "But not you, Clark. Clark Kent doesn't lie!"  
  
Clark was embarrassed by this revelation of his shortcomings. "In this matter, I do," his voice was low and timid again. "I have to keep my abilities a secret."  
  
The anger was burning red hot in Lex. Clark had never seen him so enraged. The two bald men stared at each other for a long while. Lex kept his finger on Clark's chest and was unconsciously apply pressure. Clark knew that if he were a normal man, this would hurt.  
  
Clark lowered his head and saw the finger was turning red. "Lex," he spoke softly. "You're going to hurt yourself."  
  
As if waking from a trance, Lex pulled his hand away and rubbed it. He spun around and remembered his injured knee from the fight with Alex two weeks earlier. It suddenly became stiff and a pain shot up his leg. He stumbled forward and leaned into the side of the armchair.  
  
"Lex," Clark reached for him.  
  
He quickly pushed his friend away and Lex sat on the arm of the chair. He took a quick look at Clark. The anger that had been there seemed to be gone, and a hurt yet determined look had replaced it.  
  
He lowered his head and wrapped his arms around his chest. "You shouldn't have lied to me, Clark."  
  
"I'm sorry, Lex," Clark was truly sorry this had caused so much pain for his friend.  
  
"You were the one who was never going to lie to me," Lex's tone seemed to drift off. "They all lie to me, Clark. But not you."  
  
Clark listened intently as Lex's thoughts seem to go back in time. "All of them always lied to me. Even her."  
  
"Who Lex?" Clark coaxed gently.  
  
"I knew there was something wrong," Lex began the story. "No one gets that sick, that fast without something being incredibly wrong. But they kept telling me everything was all right. Even she said that it was some type of flu or something. I never questioned it. I mean she never lied to me before."  
  
A tear rolled down Lex's cheek. "I knew everyone else had lied to me, but never her. Why would a mother lie to her own son? She wouldn't even confirm the myth of Santa Claus when I asked her as a kid. So why would she lie to me then?"  
  
"She was coming in and out of hospitals for a long time, and there were drugs for her to take every where," Lex told Clark. "Still I was told it wasn't all that bad, and the hospital visits would be over soon. Then it got worse. I didn't even know about the operation until it was over."  
  
"Her heart?" Clark questioned.  
  
"Yeah," Lex confirmed. "They told me she was going away on holiday. Then a few days after, they informed me that she wanted to see me. Things got worse after that. She became even sicker, but she never told me how bad. I should have known there was something wrong when my father stopped going to visit her. He filled the room with flowers and trinkets, and then left on a series of business trips."  
  
Lex was tearing himself apart inside with the memories, but he couldn't stop himself. He had to complete the story, if not for Clark, then for his own mindset. He needed to put it to rest in his own head. "I remember the last time I saw her," he told Clark. "I sat by her hospital bed, and she could barely lift her own head from the pillow."  
  
"I asked her, Clark," he looked up for the first time. "I asked her how bad things were, but she lied. She told me that she was going through some special therapy that was making her sicker, but would help her in the end. I asked her if she was dying, and she lied."  
  
Clark rubbed his hand over his mouth. "She wanted to spare you, Lex," he said softly.  
  
"My mother was on her death bed, and knew she would be dead within twenty four hours, and she still lied to me like you did. I asked her for the truth just like I did to you, and my mother and the guy I called my best friend both lied to me."  
  
Clark didn't know what to say. He tried to look away, but found himself riveted as Lex continued.  
  
"She asked me to kiss her before I left the room," he continued. "I always did kiss her goodbye, but that time she asked me before I even had the chance. It should have been a clue, and maybe it was meant to be one. She told me she was getting better, so I never considered she was lying. I went home, and I had a hard time sleeping. I remember hearing the phone ringing down the hall, but no one ever came in my room to get me. I learned later that it was the hospital calling to say that she was going fast, and someone should get over there to be with her when she died."  
  
Lex's chest began to heave up in down as he fought to keep his voice. "They wanted me to come and be with her in her last moments, but my father had told the staff not to tell me anything about it should the call come. He was out of town, and I was trying to sleep in my bedroom while my mother was at Metropolis General breathing her last breath. She died alone because that's how my father wanted it. If she had told me the truth, I would have never left her side that night."  
  
"I'm sorry, Lex," Clark said. "She was trying to protect you."  
  
"Is that what you were doing, Clark?" His eyes seemed to grow dark again. "Were you protecting me all the times you lied to me?"  
  
"I told you why I did it," Clark lowered his head again. "I just want us to get pass this."  
  
Lex grabbed him by his wet shirt. "We can't get pass this, Clark," he growled with gritted teeth. The tears from his story were still fresh on his face, but the tone was now anger and resentment. "You lied to me, and I can't forgive that. I expect the lies from everyone else, but not you."  
  
Clark grabbed his hands and pulled himself loose. He stepped back and took a defensive pose.  
  
"What are you going to do, Clark?" Lex asked. "Are you going to use your super powers to ward me off? I'm Lex, not Alex. I don't have a secret lab or some hidden meteor rocks lying around to attack you with. I don't want to hurt you, I just want you out."  
  
Clark relaxed his stance. He knew that Lex had gone too far with his new disapproval of Clark to be turned back now. He knew that the moment, like their friendship, was lost.  
  
Clark walked over to the fireplace and picked up his jacket and shoes. Lex made use of his injured knee and pretended to be too wrapped up with rubbing it to watch Clark. He sat on the arm of the chair and silently nursed his leg.  
  
Clark dropped the shoes to the floor and slipped his feet into them without even attempting to tie the laces. There was no time for these small hold ups. Lex wanted him out, and he knew he had to leave. He draped his jacket over one arm and looked back at Lex. "It doesn't have to be like this," he spoke softly. "I could forgive you for all your secrets and lies."  
  
"Then you are a bigger man than I," Lex said with a hint of sarcasm. He stared down at the fire in the fireplace. "I'm sorry, Clark, but you are no longer welcome here. Please don't come back."  
  
Those words spoken by his best friend stabbed into Clark's heart like a knife. He knew that this was really over. Clark Kent and Lex Luthor, for all intended purposes, were now enemies.  
  
He walked over to Lex one last time and spoke as Lex stared off in the other direction. "You are my best friend, Lex. I don't think I have ever gotten so close to someone so fast as I have with you." He fought the lump building in his throat. "If this is the way you want it, then fine. I have to learn to live with it."  
  
Lex was also fighting off his emotions, but said nothing as Clark continued. "I have never told anyone this before," his voice cracked. "We both know that I don't have a whole lot of friends, but the ones I do have, I hold very close to my heart. My father told me once that when I make friends I don't just make friends, but I fall in love. I love all my friends more than I could ever express. And I consider you to be the best." His voice cracked again and a small tear rolled down his face. "I would never say this to another guy, but I love you, Lex. You are my friend and I will miss you forever if that is how long you let this go on."  
  
Lex's chest was moving up and down again, but he refused to let Clark see him shed a tear on his behalf. He remained stoic and still and watched the flickering flames.  
  
Clark was at a loss. He knew he had to leave, but there was so much more he needed to say. Then he looked at Lex's eyes: so cold, so still and above all else burning with anger. He had only one thing left to say. He leaned into Lex's ear and spoke softly. "I forgive you for letting our friendship end like this, but please Lex. If not for me, then be honest to yourself. If I had told you who and what I really was, could you honestly say that a part of you would not have reacted like Alex did? Would you really have not tried to use my powers for your own purposes? Ask yourself what the real motivation for your trying to find out my secrets all these months has really been."  
  
It took everything Lex had to hold himself together. He continued to look straight ahead and tried not to give Clark any indication of the frail man who was falling apart inside.  
  
Clark pulled away and gave him one last look. Then with out saying a word, he slipped back into his warm wet coat and walked out the door for the final time. Lex turned quickly as he heard the door slam. Clark was gone.  
  
Slowly he slumped back down into the chair and he buried his face in his hands. He curled his legs up and leaned into a fetal position. Lex began to cry like he had not cried in many years. He cried like he did the morning that Reginald woke him in his room and told him his mother was gone. Now, like she, Clark was gone too.  
  
  
  
Clark stepped out into the pouring rain of the night. His emotions were raw. For the first time since discovering his abilities, he felt defeat. Clark took a deep breath, rolled up the collar of his jacket, tucked his hands in his pocket and walked off the stoop into the night. His world was crumbled like so much discarded waste. His heart was sinking deep within his chest, and somewhere in the distance, a song began to play against the backdrop of his life. His inner ear began hearing the words as he walked into the dark  
  
The song seemed to be playing everywhere.  
  
  
  
*** Enrique Iglesias : Hero ***  
  
*** Let me be your Hero ***  
  
The voice echoed in Clark's head as he took one last look back.  
  
*** Would you dance ***  
  
His steps seem to be in rhythm of the music.  
  
*** if I asked you to dance? ***  
  
The rain pounded on the pavement.  
  
*** Would you run ***  
  
Clark had never felt so alone before in his life.  
  
*** and never look back? ***  
  
  
  
***Would you cry***  
  
The curtains of the mansion's study were pulled back.  
  
*** if you saw me cry? ***  
  
Lex's face looked out to see Clark walking away for the last time.  
  
*** And would you save my soul, tonight? ***  
  
  
  
*** Would you tremble ***  
  
Somewhere Chloe was leaning over her keyboard and was unable to concentrate.  
  
*** if I touched your lips? ***  
  
She noticed the framed picture of herself, Pete and Clark.  
  
*** Would you laugh? ***  
  
She touched Clark's face and smiled slightly.  
  
*** Oh please tell me this. ***  
  
Her smile disappeared and she turned the frame down.  
  
*** Now would you die ***  
  
Somewhere else, Pete rolled over in his bed unable to sleep.  
  
*** for the one you loved? ***  
  
He rolled over onto his stomach and buried his face in the pillow.  
  
*** Hold me in your arms, tonight. ***  
  
  
  
*** I can be your hero, baby. ***  
  
Clark was trying to ignore the rain as each step he became more in grossed by his thoughts.  
  
*** I can kiss away the pain. ***  
  
His thoughts pulled him further away from the reality around him and into the world of pain in his soul  
  
*** I will stand by you forever. ***  
  
Somewhere, a light was flicked on, in a sub-basement garage where Lex kept the car he was driving when he hit Clark, the first time they met.  
  
*** You can take my breath away. ***  
  
  
  
*** Would you swear ***  
  
Somewhere Lana twirled around with a small white vale over her hair and fell into Whitney's arm.  
  
*** that you'll always be mine? ***  
  
The minister spoke a few words to them.  
  
*** Or would you lie? ***  
  
He smiled at them, and they kissed.  
  
*** would you run and hide? ***  
  
The minister's wife tosses a handful of rice at them.  
  
*** Am I in too deep? ***  
  
While in Whitney's embrace, Lana looked at the ring on her hand.  
  
*** Have I lost my mind? ***  
  
She gave the ring an uncertain look.  
  
*** I don't care... ***  
  
Whitney pulled her in closer, and she forced a smile for him.  
  
*** You're here tonight. ***  
  
  
  
*** I can be your hero, baby. ***  
  
Somewhere, a man in a dark suit moved to reveal Martha and Jonathan Kent listening intently to his words.  
  
*** I can kiss away the pain. ***  
  
Martha signed her name and then moved Jonathan's hand, holding a pen, across the pages.  
  
*** I will stand by you forever. ***  
  
The first man took the documents and handed them to a second man.  
  
*** You can take my breath away. ***  
  
The second man turned. It was Lionel Luthor, holding the deed to the Kent farm  
  
*** (The musical bridge begins.) ***  
  
Lex walked around the car and held a picture of his mother in his hand.  
  
*** (The musical bridge continues.) ***  
  
He kissed the picture.  
  
*** (The musical bridge comes to and end.) ***  
  
Lex tossed the picture onto the front seat of the smashed car.  
  
*** Oh, I just want to hold you. ***  
  
Somewhere, Clark stopped walking and began to cry.  
  
*** I just want to hold you. ***  
  
Clark looked up into the dark clouds over his head, as if seeking comfort.  
  
*** Am I in too deep? ***  
  
Somewhere else, Lex pulled a gas can out from a closet in the garage.  
  
*** Have I lost my mind? ***  
  
Lex opened the can and began to pour the contents out over the car.  
  
*** I don't care... ***  
  
He dropped the empty can next to the car and stepped back.  
  
*** You're here tonight. ***  
  
  
  
*** I can be your hero, baby. ***  
  
Lex pulled a lighter out of his pocket and ignited it.  
  
*** I can kiss away the pain. ***  
  
He tossed the lit flame onto the hood of the automobile.  
  
*** I will stand by your forever. ***  
  
Lex watched as the car went up in a blaze.  
  
*** You can take my breath away. ***  
  
  
  
*** I can be your hero. ***  
  
Somewhere, Clark leaned against an old building.  
  
*** I can kiss away the pain. ***  
  
He braced himself against the cold stones.  
  
*** And I will stand by you forever. ***  
  
Clark looked up at large wooden cross, with tears in his eyes.  
  
*** You can take my breath away. ***  
  
He fell to his knees in the shadow of the cross from the streetlight.  
  
*** You can take my breath away. ***  
  
Lex looked at the carved horse Clark made him for Christmas as a symbol of their friendship.  
  
*** I can be you hero ***  
  
Lex tossed the horse into the fire.  
  
  
  
  
  
The old door to the small church creaked open. Clark made his way up the wide center aisle to the alter area. He was very familiar with this old building where he had spent most of his Sunday mornings. He had performed small skits and plays for charity events with his fellow Sunday school students in the small auditorium in the basement. He had heard hundreds of sermons from the pulpit and was well versed in all the scriptures. All these deeds and preparations still did little to ready Clark for a night like this.  
  
He knew that lying was against his own beliefs, but no one had ever had to hide the fact that they were a super-powered alien before. The lies had always settled deep in Clark's conscious, but he took comfort in knowing that his deception was to protect people and not to bare false witness, as the Bible clearly stated was wrong. Clark always repented for his lies, and was comforted by knowing that his dishonesty was keeping his parents safe.  
  
He kneeled at the steps of the alter, as he had done almost all his life and began to pray in earnest. Clark knew when all else was falling apart around him, one thing was always sure. God was the same yesterday, today, and forever. He knew that the almighty savior was the only constant in the world, so it was to him he would go for the eternal guidance required in every matter of life. Like most people however; Clark usually waited until all else failed before he asked for direction. It was a self-aware fault that he was trying to overcome.  
  
"Oh, God," Clark moaned. "I am so lost here, again. I keep trying to remain strong, but I don't think I can do this anymore. How could things have gotten so bad, so quickly? I need answers. When I was lost on the other side, I knew that I didn't belong there, but this is my home. Some how my nightmares have invaded my real world and made it a nightmare. I need help, Lord. I don't know what to do to make it right again. I don't even know if it can ever be right again."  
  
Clark was rocking back and forth as he prayed. "I need you to correct this, God. Please tell me what to do," he cried.  
  
His prayers went on for over and hour, and still he had not gotten any divine inspiration or revelations that would help his cause. Clark almost felt as if God had abandoned him, too. He picked up his frail body from intense praying and made his way to a pew and sat up. He dried his eyes for the last time and tried to compose himself.  
  
He noticed that his own Bible was still sitting on the pew behind him where he sat with the other male teens from his class. His mind had been very preoccupied last Sunday when Martha insisted that he go to church even when she was in the city with Jonathan. Both his parent wanted Clark to continue with his life as much as possible while they decided what to do. Now they had made up their minds, and everything was going to be different from now on.  
  
Clark picked up the book and let it fall open on his lap. The Bible had opened to the first page where he read the first verse. 'In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, let there be light. And God saw that the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness."  
  
For some reason, Clark found himself fixated on these few verses. His mind's eye kept going back to the line 'God divided the light from the darkness.' There was something there. He had been around long enough to recognize the voice, or in this case a nudging of the Lord towards his answer.  
  
"The light from the dark," Clark repeated. "What does it mean?" He asked. "What light should I be dividing?"  
  
Clark stood up and began to pace. "I can't divide day from night, even with all my powers. The only light I can even think of is the stupid orb of blue light that Alex created when he slipped through the dimensional divide. That where all the trouble began."  
  
Then it hit him. "Wait, is it really all that simple?" He talked out loud. "Does the orb hold the answer to all of this? Will it be able to make things better?" He began to reason out. "Alex wanted to play god, and he created the light in the darkness of level three. It was the beginning of his terror in this reality, and he should have never been able to come here in the first place. The answer is I need to divide the light from the darkness. I need to close the portal and divide this world from the other, again."  
  
Clark looked up at the heavens and smiled. "That's my answer, isn't it?" In a flash of light, Clark was gone from the church in a gust of wind and a blur of colors.  
  
  
  
It took him only a few seconds to get to Luthor Corps Fertilizer Plant Number Three. Clark didn't bother to slow down, and used his great speed to hide his approached. He was inside the plant and through the entrance to level three before anyone was aware of the wind blowing by.  
  
Level three had been abandoned again. Lex stopped all of the testing after he returned, and had closed the entire area off behind a fake wall in the broom closet. Clark made his way down the ladder and stood in front of the large glowing blue ball of energy.  
  
He eyed the sphere like it was a person he was about fight to the death. "It comes down to you and me," he said. "I need to find a way to shut you down from this side. So that will take a little work."  
  
Clark walked around it a few times. "I don't know if this will work, but I saw this in a comic book once. If I can run fast enough around you in a circle, I can create a wall of air. Then by slowly making my circles smaller and smaller, I can use the air to compress your energy and crush you. Or perhaps pop you like a balloon. In either case, you should be destroyed."  
  
Clark leaned over like a long distance runner preparing for a sprint, and took several deep breaths. Then he began to make circles around the orb faster and faster. He had been drained several times in the last few weeks, but Clark knew he had to muster up all energy he had in reserves and complete this mission. Even if his problems were not solved, he knew the portal could not be allowed to survive one minute longer.  
  
Slowly he calculated his every move and began making the circles smaller and smaller. Remaining conscious of his every step, Clark attempted to direct the current of wind he was producing at the center of the orb. He was moving so fast, that there were no signs of a man in the room any longer. Only the orb and a solid streak of colors around it remained. The energy mass began cracking louder with each passing turn.  
  
Clark allowed himself to look up for a fraction of a second to see that the orb was getting smaller and seemed to be crushing in on its self. He gave an inner smile and continued to run faster than he ever had before. There was a lot more cracking of energy and bolts of lightning were beginning to shoot out. He knew he was doing something that would eventually destroy the portal, so Clark continued around the mass a few more hundred times until he could not stand the pressure from the jolts of electricity around him any longer. A burst of electric shock hit him just as he was about to stop and flung him across the room for over thirty feet.  
  
Regaining his composure, Clark collected himself and looked up at the spectacle of lights. What ever he had done was starting a chain reaction, and the orb continued to compress against its self while energy cracked all around the room. A loud hissing sound that became a whistle became louder than even he could endure. He covered his ears and tried to find safety in the far corner of the room.  
  
More flashes of light and energy were now filling every inch of the room. Clark began to wonder if he had done something wrong and had doomed Smallville instead of saving it. The whistle became constant and over powering. Clark felt as if he would pass out at any second, but he struggled to stay awake and focused. Then he looked up and saw what appeared to be a solid wall of white light shooting out from all directions of the orb. A growing bright white light that quickly filled the entire room and then passed through everything of matter and anti matter to encompass the entire town, if not the world, was replacing the smaller blue orb. Clark screamed louder than he ever thought he could, and then everything in Clark's mind went black.  
  
  
  
The next thing Clark remembered was floating in the black nothingness. He felt as if his body were spinning like a pinwheel. He tried to focus his thoughts and get a grip on where he was. Then just as quickly as he was there, Clark was gone.  
  
He bolted up in his bed and sat up. He was again in his own bed at the Kent farm, and it was the middle of the night. He looked over and saw three thirty on his clock radio. Some how he had made it out of Level Three and found himself safe and sound in his home again. But what had happened in Level Three? He wondered. His mind was already becoming foggy on the things that had just happened.  
  
Clark reached up and ran his hand through his thick black hair. "I have hair again," he whispered. "I was never shaved bald."  
  
The realization that perhaps what he had just been through had not really happen hit him. He began to look around the room and found that everything was just the same as it had been when he went to bed two weeks ago on the night before everything started. It was as if the entire last two weeks had been erased.  
  
Quickly Clark focused his x-ray vision around the house and peered into his parent's bedroom. He had promised never to do this, but this was a special case, and they were fast asleep for hours anyway. He stared at the wall, and after a few seconds, he saw that his parents were both asleep in the room. A little more concentration, and he could see that Jonathan's spine and Martha's wrist were as good as new. They had never been broken.  
  
"It was all a bad dream." He whispered again. "Or was it? Maybe by destroying the portal, I was able to set everything right. But what if everyone else remembers, too?"  
  
Clark picked up the cordless phone he had left on his nightstand after talking to Chloe for two hours the night before. "There's only one way to know for sure," he thought to himself and began dialing a number.  
  
Lex Luthor laid in a deep slumber, alone on his large bed in his mansion just on the outskirts of Smallville, when the phone next to his bed began to wring. The noise startled the young bald man as he sat up quickly. The phone lines to his room were always silenced during the night, and only his private line remained functional. Very few people knew the secret number, and it was always alarming for him to hear it's sound. Even more so at "Three thirty," in the morning, he looked over at his clock radio and read.  
  
"This had better be important," he said harshly into the receiver.  
  
"Lex," Clark's uncertain voice came over the line.  
  
"Clark?" Lex questioned. "Is everything all right?"  
  
Lex's tone seemed to be supportive and understanding. Perhaps the past two weeks have been wiped out. He needed to know for sure, so he asked. "Are you mad at me Lex?"  
  
"I wasn't until two minutes ago," Lex shot. "Not too many people call in the middle of the night to ask if someone is mad at them, Clark."  
  
"I know, I'm sorry," Clark's voice trailed off.  
  
"Clark?" Lex grew concerned for his friend. "Are you okay?"  
  
Clark was happy that things seemed to have never happened, but he was so sure that the last two weeks were real and not a dream like he thought his first encounter with Alex was.  
  
"Clark," Lex's voice came back after a few silent seconds. "Talk to me here. Are you all right? What happen?"  
  
"I had that dream again," Clark spoke deciding to confide in him. "The one I had at Christmas when I was attacked by an alternate version of you."  
  
"Really?" Lex was intriguing. "Do you want to talk about it this time?"  
  
Clark thought about it for a few seconds. "Yeah, I think I do," he said. "I'm already starting to forget parts of it, but I think I need to talk about what I remember."  
  
Lex leaned against his headboard and readied himself a long talk. "I am listening, Clark."  
  
"You don't have to listen to me if you don't want to," Clark told him as he positioned himself for a long talk, also. "It's late and you need your sleep."  
  
"I'm sure I do," Lex grinned at the other end. "But I know you wouldn't call in the middle of the night if it were not important. So go ahead and bend my ear a little. Having someone to talk to is what friends are for."  
  
Clark smiled widely. "And you're the best, Lex."  
  
"It's about time you realized that," Lex joked reaching over to his nightstand. "Now, sit back and tell me all about your latest adventure in Clark land."  
  
For the next few hours until the sun came up, Clark told Lex about his dream and the details he could still remember. He was careful to leave out the super hero stuff, but he still felt comfortable talking with his best friend. The bond Clark had thought he lost in the alternate reality was back.  
  
It was still unclear to him if these things were all part of a dream or if he had really been visited by an alternate Lex, but as the details continued to disappear from Clark's mind, it became less important than having a nice conversation with his good friend. For the first time in over two weeks, Clark was happy again.  
  
  
  
This story is dedicated to all the best friends and heroes in our lives.  
  
The End?  
  
Epilogue: Meanwhile Else/place, a frail Lionel Luthor sat up in his hospital bed in a dimly lit room. He had been regaining his strength in the last few weeks he had been here, and was aware and alert of his surroundings. He was able to raise his head when one of his personal assistants entered the room.  
  
"Mr. Luthor." The younger man spoke as he entered the room.  
  
"Jamison." Lionel almost smiled.  
  
"I am afraid I have some bad news for you sir." He said cautiously. "We completed the survey of the mansion's remains, but there was no sign of your son. Test are being preformed on a badly burnt corpse we found in the secret sub basement to confirm that it is indeed your son.  
  
Lionel hung his eyes with a hint of sorrow.  
  
"We did however make a startling discovery in a small sub basement room that was unknown to even the chief of security."  
  
"Discovery?" Lionel repeated.  
  
"Yes, sir." The man nodded his head. "It seemed that there was another large tube and this one was not destroyed by the fire or explosions."  
  
Lionel gave the man a puzzled look.  
  
"We opened the tube and found something." He continued.  
  
"What?" Lionel questioned.  
  
"This." The Jamison stepped aside and revealed a young boy, about thirteen years of age with a full head of bright red hair.  
  
The young boy approached the bed and looked at Lionel.  
  
"Dear, God." Lionel Luthor gasped. He is the spitting image of Alexander when he was that age.  
  
"Hello, father." The boy said as he leaned in.  
  
Lionel jumped up and wrapped his arms around the boy's neck. "Could this be?" He cried. "Have I been given a second chance to make things right with my son? Has God given me a new beginning?"  
  
The young Alex returned his father's embrace. "Everything will be as it should have been," he said into his father's ear. "Alexander Luthor is home again." The light seemed to dim as Alex's lips curled into a menacing grin. 


End file.
